Big B’s big heart
by Ruwini Jayawardana
 Sri Lanka will host some of the
top Bollywood stars as Sri Lanka Tourism together with the International
Indian Film Academy (IIFA) have made plans to hold the IIFA Awards in
Colombo. The grand event which is dubbed the “Bollywood Oscars” weekend
will take over the city from June 3 to 5. Icon of Hindi cinema Amitabh
Bachchan visited the isle recently to take part in a glittering function
which endorsed Sri Lanka as the host to IFFA Awards.
The three-day event comprises events such as the FICCI IIFA Global
Business Forum, the IIFA Fashion Extravaganza, the IIFA Foundation
Celebrity Cricket match, world premieres of Indian films and IIFA Film
workshop. The weekend will climax with the much-looked forward to IFFA
Awards night in which the most talented and popular faces in Bollywood
will not only walk away with accolades but will enthrall the viewers
with memorable performances.
The Bachchans: Big B, wife Jaya, son Abhishek, daughter-in-law
Aishwarya and actors such as Hrithik Roshan, Celina Jaitley, Vivek
Oberoi, Amrita Rao and Dia Mirza are expected to take part. The event
will be attended by 500 guests and watched by 600 million TV viewers in
110 countries across the globe.
The awards, first staged in 2000, are held beyond the boundaries of
India annually with the aim of popularising Bollywood movies among the
international audience. After its inception in London, the IIFA Awards
have been held in Macau, Johannesburg and Amsterdam.
“All these sites have become favourite sites for shooting Hindi films
and attracting tourists. Out of around 1 000 movies that are released by
India’s production houses nearly half are shot abroad. IIFA not only
focuses on films, it is also about business networking and
cross-cultural exchange,” IIFA Brand Ambassador, Big B, said while
adding that the IIFA is similar to a combination of Cannes and the
Oscars. He also noted that the potential to film in Sri Lanka is
untapped and is most likely to change after the IIFA.
“It will open doors to the exchange of technology and interaction
with some of public’s favourite stars,” he added.
 Another aspect of the gala event is that it will take the country by
storm exactly a year after terrorism was eliminated from Sri Lanka. “Sri
Lanka may be called a small country but it is a country with a big
heart. I admire the manner in which Sri Lankans try to integrate harmony
and peace among its ethnic and cultural groups in the country.
It sets a wonderful example to the world and I would certainly
encourage many others to visit the country and explore what it has to
offer to them,” he said. Speaking about his Aladin co-star former Miss
Sri Lanka and Bollywood actress Jacqueline Fernandez, Bachchan said that
Jackie embodies worthy cultural traits which she had inherited from her
motherland.
“She was the example of how a temperament of a film set needs to be.
She mingled with everyone and always had a cheerful smile on her lips,”
he revealed. Former Tourism Minister Achala Jagoda, Tourism Ministry
Secretary K.A.D. George Michael, Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivard
Cabraal, IFFA Director Sabbas Joseph, Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau
Managing Director Dileep Mudadeniya, artistes Ravindra Randeniya,
Jackson Anthony and Jacqueline Fernandez also spoke. Bachchan also
called on President Mahinda Rajapaksa during his stay.
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