Aishwarya Rai starrer 'Provoked' will be premiered at the Cannes Film Festival on May 19, the film's director Jagmohan Mundhra said.

The film starring Aishwarya as the protagonist depicting the role of a battered Indian wife in the U K also has Nandita Das, Naveen Andrews, Miranda Richardson, Robbie Coltrane, Rebecca Pidgeon playing important roles with music by A R Rahman.

Screenplay is by Carl Austin based on a book called 'Circle of Light' by Rahila Gupta and Kiranjit Ahluwalia. It is a true story of Kiranjit who killed her violent husband. The case had shocked Britain nearly a decade and half ago.

The worldwide launch of the film will be in June-July after the premiere. ''we have had one screening in London for British Culture Minister Patricia Heuitt who had launched the Bollywood Initiative in England. The screening was well received and according to the minister, there was not a single dry eye in the audience,'' Mundhra said and added that he was pleased with the response.

New York based Lee Daniel company will market the film globally.

''The film is complete and the company is devising marketing strategies for the worldwide release,'' he added.