Kamal Haasan to be conferred French award

Chennai: Actor-filmmaker Kamal Haasan is all set to be awarded the Chevalier de L'Ordre Arts et Letters (The Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters) by the French government, as part of France's premiere award.

"The distinction, which is yet another laurel for the actor, is in recognition of his high level of artistic excellence and his distinguished career achievements. The award will be conferred on Kamal Haasan at a special ceremony," read a statement from Haasan. The award is presented "to recognize eminent artists and writers, as well as people who have contributed significantly to furthering the arts in France and throughout the world." Other Indian recipients of the award include late Tamil actor Sivaji Ganeshan, Amitabh Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Nandita Das and Shah Rukh Khan.