When one of the biggest entertainment industries in the world comes to town to celebrate its cinema, stars and filmmakers, it is guaranteed to be an affair to remember. And so it was when the Indian International Film Academy (IIFA) again chose Macau as the setting to host their 14th awards ceremony
Macau was the setting for one of the biggest international celebrations of Indian Cinema, when the 14th International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) came to town for a weekend in July, bringing with it film stars, celebrities and fans from around the world. Organised by Wizcraft International Entertainment, the Cotai Arena of The Venetian Macao hosted the event from July 4 to 6, with this year being particularly noteworthy as 2013 celebrates 100 Years of Indian cinema.
As the world’s biggest film producer, India makes more than double the number of movies Hollywood does, on an annual basis. It is the largest film industry in the world in terms of ticket sales and number of films produced, and the second largest in terms of revenue. Already popular in countries with sizable Indian populations, Indian films are also a growing hit with Chinese audiences, as well as in Russia and Germany.
Andre Timmins, Director of Wizcraft International, explained to CLOSER the special period Indian Cinema is currently undergoing.
“It is most definitely a very special moment for us. The fact that it’s been 100 years since our first feature film is a big milestone. I think that Indian cinema is starting to make a huge mark on the world,” says Timmins. “Indian film-makers are really expanding their boundaries and creating movies that reach out to audiences beyond the Indian subcontinent. Bollywood has grown larger than just big names and banners. Smaller films with great content are doing extremely well, and we’re at a stage of cinematic maturity.”
IIFA is seen as Bollywood’s answer to the Oscars and viewed by an audience of millions globally. The awards ceremony, which started in 2000, always takes place outside India. Macau is in the unique position of being the only destination, to date, to have hosted the event twice. In 2009 the 10th edition of the awards also took place at The Venetian Macao.
Explaining why the event came back to Macau so soon, Timmins refers to the last time they were in the territory.
“We have very fond memories of IIFA 2009 that was hosted at The Venetian Macao. Macau is a fantastic meeting point for anyone who loves Bollywood. It is close to Dubai, to Sri Lanka, to the Far East- be it Thailand, Singapore, Japan, China and especially Hong Kong- so it is a convergence point. Fans can come from all across the world. That is what makes Macau a fantastic meeting place.”
And this point was illustrated when brand ambassador Abhishek Bachchan declared the three day celebration open on July 4. Eager fans had the opportunity to get close to their idols as they strode the green carpet (instead of red, the colour switched in 2007 in awareness of climate change), keen for the chance to get an autograph from the likes of megastars Shah Rukh Khan, Sridevi, Shahid Kapur, Amrita Rao, Dia Mirza, Abhishek Bachchan, Madhuri Dixit-Nene, Jacqueline Fernandez, Neha Dhupia, Vidya Balan, Anushka Sharma, and Hollywood legend Jean Claude Van Damme, among others.
One of the event’s main attractions, Shah Rukh Khan, co-hosted the awards ceremony on the final night, along with actor Shahid Kapoor, which saw a diverse selection of films vying for awards, many fitting the description given by Andre Timmins of being smaller in production size, but more content focused, proof of the growing trend to diversify genres.
Anurag Basu’s film Barfi!, the grand winner of the night, took the top award at the ceremony. A romantic comedy, Barfi! tells the story of a mute and deaf man and his relationship with two women. The movie was praised by critics for its positive portrayal of physically disabled people, a somewhat unusual theme for Bollywood screenplays.
Other awards the film took home included: Best Actor (Ranbir Kapoor), Best Picture (Ronnie Screwvala and Siddarth Roy Kapur), Best Director, Best Story and Best Sound Design, among others.
With a total of 14 gongs, Basu told the audience, “I think someday we will look back and say these were the golden years of Indian cinema.”
Vidya Balan was the winner of the Best Actress award for her portrayal of a pregnant woman in search of her husband in Kahaani, and Vicky Donor stars Yami Gautam and Ayushmann Khurrana won the Best Debut awards in the female and male categories, respectively.
English Vinglish director Gauri Shinde bagged the Best Debut Director award. Anurag Kashyap’s Gangs of Wasseypur 1 won two awards – Best Action (Shyam Kaushal) and Best Dialogue (Zeishan Quadri, Akhilesh, Sachin Ladia and Anurag Kashyap), which was shared with Juhi Chaturvedi for Vicky Donor.
The awards extravaganza paid homage to all that makes Indian cinema so popular worldwide – music, dancing and fashion all took to the stage featuring performances by veteran actresses Sridevi and Madhuri Dixit. Additional entertainers included actresses Deepika Padukone, Parineeti Chopra and actor Ayushmann Khurrana, among others.
For the final performance of the night Madhuri Dixit-Nene wore an LED dress while receiving a standing ovation from her peers and a 7,000 strong audience from Hong Kong, Mainland China and Macau, bringing to a close a night that exemplified the cinema of one of the biggest entertainment industries in the world.
In the words of Andre Timmins: “We love our movies to be larger than life. We go to the movies to be transported into worlds that are vastly different from the mundane. I think the singing and the dancing have played a very important role. Indian audiences love the glamour and fanfare of the movies. They are clichés of course, but that doesn’t mean they don’t reflect, and furthermore tell, the larger stories of our lives.”
Films in competition for Best Picure:
Barfi
Set in 1970s India, Barfi! is the story of three young people who learn that love can neither be defined nor contained by society’s norms. Barfi, a hearing and speech impaired boy, falls in love with Shruti. In spite of her feelings for Barfii, Shruti gives into societal pressure to marry a ‘normal’ man. Many years later their paths cross once again when Barfi, now in love with Jhilmil, is on the run from the police. Caught in a cat-and-mouse game in search of the girl Barfi loves, Shruti realizes that she is still in love with him. She must now choose between her happiness and Barfi.
Directed, written and co-produced by Anurag Basu
starring Ranbir Kapoor, Priyanka Kapoor and IIeana D’Cruz
Vicky Donor
Dr. Baldev Chaddha runs a sperm bank in New Delhi that unfortunately has more failed cases than successes. A healthy, high performing donor is needed. A small brawl in the colony brings Dr. Chaddha face to face with Vicky Arora, a young, good-looking, Punjabi boy and Chaddha concludes that Vicky could be THAT donor. Chaddha’s days and nights are spent convincing Vicky till he finally gives in. When Vicky finds love with Ashima Roy, a pretty Bengali girl, their blissful world comes crashing down due to Vicky’s past as a donor.
Directed by Shoojit Sircar
starring Anu Kapoor, Ayushmann Khurrana, Yami Gautam and Dolly Ahluwalia
Gangs of Wasseypur
Part 1
Shahid Khan is exiled after impersonating the legendary Sultana Daku in order to rob British trains. Now outcast, Shahid becomes a worker at Ramadhir Singh’s colliery, only to spur a battle of revenge that passes on to generations. At the turn of the decade, Shahid’s son, the philandering Sardar Khan, vows to get his father’s honour back, becoming the most feared man of Wasseypur.
Directed by Anurag Kashyap
starring Manoj Bajpayee, Richa Chadda and Nawazuddin Siddiqui
English Vinglish
The story of a sweet tempered housewife who endures small slights from her well educated husband and daughter, because of her inability to speak English. She is resourceful, but somehow they don’t notice these traits. One day on a trip to visit her sister in Manhattan, she decides to enrol in an English Learners class and meets a host of new people who teach her to value herself beyond the narrow perspective of her family.
Directed by Gauri Shinde
starring Sridevi, Adil Hussain, Mehdi Nebbou, and Priya Anand
Kahaani
Vidya Bagchi arrives in Kolkata from London to find her missing husband. Seven months pregnant and alone, she begins a relentless search. With nothing to rely on except fragments from her memories about him, all clues seem to reach a dead end when everyone tries to convince Vidya that her husband does not exist. She slowly realises that nothing is what it seems. In a city soaked in lies, Vidya is determined to unravel the truth about her husband – for herself and her unborn child – at any cost.
Directed by Sujoy Gjosh
starring Vidya Balan, Parambrata Chatterjee and Dhritiman Chatterjee
Paan Singh Tomar
Sportsmen and outlaws inhabit two different universes, while one shines amidst the bright lights of glory, the other haunts the ravines of notoriety. But in director Tigmanshu Dhulia’s biopic the two worlds collide. Based on a true story of a runner employed by the army, this film tells the story of an Indian athlete and seven-time national steeplechase champion who, after his retirement, became one of the most feared outlaws in Chambal Valley.
Directed by Tigmanshu Dhulia
starring Mahie Gill, Rajendra Gupta and Imran Hasnee
Talaash
Inspector Surjan Singh Sekhawat is put on the case of a film actor who has driven his car off an embankment and drowned in the sea. The circumstances do not fit with suicide, nor is there any evidence of foul play. Meanwhile, Surjan’s wife is grappling with her grief over the death of their son. To avoid his difficult home life, Surjan focuses on solving Armaan’s mysterious death and begins investigating in the nearby red-light district, meeting Rosie, an alluring prostitute, who may hold the answer to the mystery.
Directed by Reema kagti
starring Aamir Khan, Kareena Kapoor and Rani Mukerji
