Thiruvananthapuram, Dec 18 (PTI) Noted filmmaker Payal Kapadia, who won the Gran Prix award at Cannes for her debut feature 'All We Imagine as Light', on Wednesday said women are still "extremely underrepresented" in the industry and should have "more access to opportunities".

"Not just women, the voices of the marginalised sections are not getting enough attention. As India is a diverse country, these people should have access to filmmaking," she said at an "In conversation" programme held as part of the ongoing 29th International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK) here.

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Kapadia, who is being awarded the 'Spirit of Cinema Award' by the IFFK 2024, said there should also be diversity in selection committees which will be reflected in our festivals and different aspects of filmmaking.

She said her film 'All We Imagine as Light' was the result of a collaborative work of all the women actors in the movie.

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"It has been a learning process for me also and that makes the role of director very easy," Kapadia said.

Asked whether women filmmakers can deal with women's issues much better than male directors, she said "All humans have male and female aspects in them."

As individuals, male directors can also connect with the audience with a feminine theme in their perspective, she added.

Kapadia said her films, including earlier documentaries, dealt with lingering ghosts of men whom the women do not want. "I am often confused and bothered by the knawing, clawing men we don't want in our lives," she said.

Kapadia said she was "very honoured" by the IFFK's recognition by choosing her for the Spirit of Cinema Award.

The festival audience in Kerala is very special as they have enough space here to engage in meaningful discourse, she said.

The director added she was excited about her film winning two Golden Globe nominations.

"It helps our distributors in other countries to draw the public to watch the movie, Kapadia said.

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