When Indians in Bangkok went berserk over Bollywood stars

When Indians in Bangkok went berserk over Bollywood stars
Tuesday, June 10, 2008 11:07 IST
By Santa Banta News Network
Indians in Bangkok had a brush with their favourite Bollywood stars over the weekend, collecting autographs and taking pictures of top-notch actors who had descended on the city for the International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) Awards.

Enthusiastic fans gathered outside the Dusit Thani Hotel, one of the oldest five-star hotels here, to catch a glimpse of the cine stars during the three-day extravaganza that ended late Sunday.

From Amitabh Bachchan, Abhishek, Aishwarya Rai, Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor to Fardeen Khan, Akshay Kumar, Govinda, Zayed Khan, Katrina Kaif and Vivek Oberoi - people went ga-ga over the superstars as well as budding actors.

But the Bachchan family was the most popular of them all. Fans turned out in huge numbers to see the Bollywood's most sought after couple Aishwarya and Abhishek - they had the longest line of autograph seekers.

'IIFA means a lot for us Indians living here. It is a perfect showcasing of India in terms of our stars and glamour, ' Ravi Mathur, who works as general manager in a company here, told.

Thailand has a nearly 85, 000-strong Indian diaspora, with families of many having settled in the country three-four generations ago.

Ashima, a young woman, was over the moon as her autograph book was full.

She said: 'It's like a dream come true for us. We usually see them (stars) in films and admire them. But the experience of meeting them in person is ecstatic. I can't explain in words how I am feeling right now.

'All the stars are so nice. My favourite actor is Kareena Kapoor and favourite director is Yash Chopra. His films are so lively and I was thrilled when he greeted me so nicely and gave me an autograph as well.'

And Bollywood stars were at their best behaviour and went all out to please their NRI fans, who came in droves and stood outside the main IIFA venue for hours to see them.

The IIFA, which has Amitabh as its brand ambassador, has till date been held in nine different locations across the world, including Dubai, Sun City and Singapore.

Said Richa Sachdev, who runs a provision shop here: 'I am so happy that IIFA happened here this year. When I watched the award function in London, I never thought it will come here this time. Finally, it happened here. I am so delighted.'

According to cine buffs, not all Hindi films are released here, though some popular ones are screened over the weekends.

'They run it for three days at the weekends, ' said Mita, a 26-year-old housewife.

'It's so good the IIFA happened here. We will cherish the experience. Most of the stars came out and paid attention to us. They shook hands with us, clicked pictures with us. We used to think that the stars have attitude, but in real life they are so good, ' she said excitedly.

Rarely are such star-studded extravaganzas organised here. So, when the Bollywood fraternity was finally present in the city, not many missed the opportunity to see and talk to them.

'We read about it in the papers and we were really looking forward to it because stars coming to Bangkok mean a lot to us, ' said Gurjeet, who runs a hotel.

'When Deepika Padukone was shooting for 'Chandni Chowk To China' she stayed in our hotel. But seeing all the stars together is a completely different experience.'

The grand IIFA awards ceremony was held at Siam Niramik here Sunday evening, complete with glitzy performances and Boman Irani and Riteish Deshmukh as hosts had the crowd in splits with their easy repartee.

The 2, 000-capacity hall was full, with a majority of the audience consisting of the Indian diaspora
From Comedy to Crime: Rajkummar Rao's Most Impressive Roles!

Rajkummar Rao has become one of Bollywood's most flexible actors, known for diving into all kinds of roles-from intense characters to hilarious ones. Here are

Friday, November 08, 2024
Prabhas extends his heartfelt welcome to debutants Aaman Devgan and Rasha Thadani for Azaad!

Abhishek Kapoor's Azaad has been grabbing all eyeballs for the right reasons. The big screen adventure introduces two young actors Aaman Devgan and Rasha Thadani in lead roles. The

Friday, November 08, 2024
Singham Again Smashes Box Office with Impressive Day 6 Collection!

The much-anticipated action-packed film Singham Again has set the box office on fire, showing no signs of slowing down. After an extraordinary first week, this Rohit Shetty directorial

Friday, November 08, 2024
Director Anubhav Sinha prefers Convenience over Subsidies!

The 11th India International Film Tourism Conclave (IIFTC) event had a panel discussion focused on enhancing the relationship between India's film industry and state

Friday, November 08, 2024
Vikrant Massey Meets His Idol on KBC 16: A Special Episode with Amitabh Bachchan and IPS Officer Manoj Kumar!

This Friday, get ready for an exciting and unforgettable episode of Kaun Banega Crorepati 16 on Sony Entertainment Television! Hosted by the legendary Amitabh Bachchan, the

Friday, November 08, 2024
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT