US, Nov. 4 -- Late one night in May 2024, a flight from Mumbai touched down at Paris's Charles de Gaulle Airport, carrying a small delegation of Indian filmmakers. Their connecting flight to Nice was due to depart in less than an hour, yet the immigration queues crawled along, and the group resigned themselves to missing it.

Then a uniformed French official appeared. His eyes settled on Ashutosh Gowariker, and he asked in a lilting French accent, "'Lagaan'... 'Swades'... 'Jodhaa Akbar'?" The director, ever modest, simply nodded. Beaming, the officer shook the Oscar-nominated filmmaker's hand, then parted the queues and escorted the bewildered delegation through immigration, in time for their flight.

I was there to witness it, one more ...