Bangkok - In a continued effort to take Indian cinema to the world, the International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) kicked off Bollywood's three-day awards weekend in Bangkok Friday. Indian cinema's version of the Oscars is attended by a long list of Bollywood stars and big names in fashion. Indian film icon and IIFA ambassador Amitabh Bachchan said the idea was to promote Indian film overseas.
The strength of the Indian film industry has been bringing people together, he said.
"In Indian cinema we have always seen that we have honored our culture, our traditions, our ethos, and we want to carry this ethos beyond our shores so that we can build bigger bridges between two communities," he said at an opening press conference.
"Cinema brings people together," he said.
Including his own family.
The event is more than just a little bit about the Bachchan family, with Amitabh's son Aghishek Bachchan and his daughter-in-law Miss World 1994 Aishwarya Rai Bachchan also attending. Their first movie together since the couple were married, Sarkar Raj (Absolute Ruler), was slated to premiere in Bangkok Friday.
The film did screen to exclusive audiences at the Cannes festival last month, but its general release premiere is in Bangkok.
The three-day IIFA includes fashion shows, business seminars and tourism promotions, but it's mostly all about movies, specifically Indian movies and increasing their international exposure.
Event director Sabbas Joseph called it a business growth opportunity, particularly for industries related to cinema.
"We stand committed to our objective of building a bond with our host countries that translates into business opportunities," he said at the opening press conference.
India's film industry produces the most movies and has the largest audience in the world, primarily because of its huge domestic market. In most other countries it is overshadowed by Hollywood.
The annual IIFA awards are aimed at increasing the international profile of Indian cinema, Sabbas said. Each year starting in London in 2000 the sales of Indian films have increased in the host country after the event.
Thailand has a focus of Indian cinema for one week but the rest of the year Indian movies get little screen time in Bangkok, Sabbas said. After IIFA they hope that will change.
Other host countries have included South Africa, Malaysia, United Arab Emirates, Singapore, and Holland.
