‘Where is Aishwarya Rai?’: Fans slam L’Oréal Cannes campaign as Alia Bhatt takes centre stage

The 79th Festival de Cannes kicked off on May 12, 2026, but before a that, different kind of drama has already taken over Indian social media. L’Oréal Paris, celebrating its 29th consecutive year as the official beauty partner of the festival, found itself in the middle of a full-blown controversy, and it had nothing to do with red carpet fashion.

The video that started it all

 

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A post shared by L’Oréal Paris Official (@lorealparis)

On May 10, the official L’Oréal Paris account posted a video on Instagram showing large promotional posters being unfurled across the facade of the iconic Hotel Martinez in Cannes. The visuals featured Alia Bhatt, Viola Davis, Eva Longoria, and Helen Mirren, among others.

The caption read “And… action! The most iconic facade in Cannes is getting its festival look.”

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It was meant to be a celebratory moment. Instead, it lit a fuse.

The glaring absence of Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, who has been face of the brand at Cannes for over two decades, triggered immediate backlash against L’Oreal. Fans quickly took to X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram to voice their displeasure, calling it the “Erasure of a Legend” and slamming the brand for sidelining the original queen of Cannes.

Two decades of loyalty, one missing poster

The anger is rooted in history. Aishwarya Rai Bachchan became a global brand ambassador for L’Oréal in 2003, alongside names like Andie MacDowell, Eva Longoria, and Penélope Cruz. Since then, she has walked the Cannes red carpet more than 20 times under the brand’s banner, becoming arguably the most recognisable Indian face the French Riviera has ever seen.

Many Indian fans argued that the long-time face of the brand should have appeared alongside the other celebrities featured in the campaign. One comment on the post read, “New faces may come, but you can’t replace the OG Aishwarya. Even you know her worth.”

Another user went further, stating that without the ‘Ponniyin Selvan’ actress, L’Oréal meant little to Indian buyers.

A further response pointed out that Aishwarya Rai Bachchan has represented L’Oréal Paris for more than two decades and played a key part in its reach in India.

Alia Bhatt steps into the spotlight

While Aishwarya’s absence dominated the comment sections, Alia Bhatt was very much present, and front and centre. Alia is returning to Cannes for the second consecutive year as a Global Ambassador for L’Oréal Paris. Speaking about her return, she said it felt incredibly special to be back and that she was truly excited for what feels like an even bigger celebration this year.

Alia had made her Cannes debut at the 2025 festival, representing L’Oréal Paris as their global ambassador. Her ascent within the brand’s hierarchy has been swift. From the time they named her a global ambassador in September 2024, a digital war has erupted on social media between fans of Aishwarya and fans of Bhatt, even as the brand’s theme for 2026 remains “confidence and empowerment.”

A brand caught between two eras

L’Oréal Paris officially confirmed that all three Indian ambassadors Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Alia Bhatt, Aditi Rao Hydari are representing India at this year’s festival, each embodying a distinct expression of confidence, ambition, and individuality. So technically, they have not dropped Aishwarya Rai. But optics matter in the world of brand campaigns, and a promotional video plastered across the most photographed hotel in Cannes without her face carried a message of its own.

The backlash appears to flag a deeper cultural rift: older fans remain fiercely loyal to the classic, statuesque glamour of the 2000s, while the brand is clearly pivoting toward Alia’s more relatable and edgy Gen Z appeal.

What happens on the red carpet

Despite the digital noise, both stars have remained professional. However, for what one might call L’Oréal purists, the brand’s aggressive push of Alia as the new face of India at Cannes feels like a passing of the torch that many are not ready to accept.

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan is going to attend the 2026 festival. This continues her two-decade-long association with both the event and the brand. Whether L’Oréal gives her the visual real estate her fans feel she deserves on those Martinez hotel walls, in campaign posts, in the front-row seating at brand events, will be watched very closely in the days ahead.