Entertainment: “Nepotism Rocks” at IIFA

Bollywood filmmaker Karan Johar took a dig at Kangna Ranaut’s nepotism remark at IIFA Awards event on Sunday. Saif Ali Khan and Varun Dhawan also joined Karan and ignited the flame.

When Varun came on the stage to receive the Best Performance in a Comic Role for Dishoom, Saif joked that the actor had made it big in the industry because of his father, director David Dhawan.

“You are here because of your pappa,” said Saif.

To which Varun replied, “And you're here because of your mummy (veteran actress Sharmila Tagore).”

Karan then promptly added, “I am here because of my pappa (late filmmaker Yash Johar).” They then said in unison: “Nepotism rocks”.

Varun took a potshot at Karan by singing “Bole choodiyan, bole kangana.”

Karan, with his quick-wit commented, “Kangana naa hi bole toh achha hai... Kangana bahut bolti hai. (It's better Kangana doesn't say anything, she talks a lot.”

Meanwhile, Kangna took to Twitter to hit back at the actors and announced the release date of her upcoming film Simran.

Twitterati supported Kangana and criticised the actors.

The actress had ignited the nepotism debate when she appeared on Koffee with Karan. She had referred to Johar as “the flag bearer of nepotism”, which had not gone down well with the director.

Assamese movie in world’s biggest festival for kids

The Assamese filmmaker Bidyut Kotoky’s latest movie on kids raised in troubled regions was selected for the world’s biggest film festival for children KIDS FIRST ! and also given a 4.5-star rating.

Kotoky's Xhoihobote Dhemalite (Rainbow Fields) had won the best foreign film award in the Hollywood CineFest.

“I was elated to receive a communication from a juror of KIDS FIRST! saying my film offers an inside look at children growing up during a violent period in Assam and shows how they are affected, The scenery of the Indian State of Assam is stunningly beautiful and calming, especially the scenes of the river bordering the village” said Kotoky.

KIDS FIRST! is a programme of the Coalition for Quality Children’s Media, a national, non-profit organisation founded in 1991 for teaching children critical viewing skills and increasing the visibility and availability of quality children’s media.

Kotoky feels really encouraged on being reviewed by KIDS FIRST!

“The nature of the KIDS FIRST makes this platform very interesting. Each KIDS FIRST! venue partner offers its own awards and prizes. Accepted feature films get a first look opportunity for distribution by Engine 15 Media Group and Soundview Media Partners”, he said.

Xhoihobote Dhemalite is semi-autobiographical in nature, inspired by true incidents from the director's life.

It stars Victor Banerjee, Nakul Vaid, Naved Aslam, Nipon Goswami and Nikumoni Barua besides supermodel Dipannita Sharma. It is produced by India Stories, a Mumbai-based production house, and co-produced by Kotoky’s Dhruv Creative Productions and Kurmasana Kreates, a US-based production house.

Salman appreciates Kher’s Ranchi Diaries

The teaser of Ranchi Diaries starring Anupam Kher and Jimmy Shergill was released on Sunday. The film revolves around the story of a young aspiring actress and her Godfather who will do whatever it takes to make it big in life.

Salman Khan has appreciated the teaser and has wished Anupam Kher luck for his upcoming movie on Twitter.

Directed by Sattwik Mohanty, the film also stars Soundarya Sharma, Himansh, Satish Kaushik and Taaha.

Shahid, Alia win best actor awards at IIFA

Shahid Kapoor and Alia Bhatt took home the top acting honours for their roles in the drama centred on drug addiction problem in Punjab, Udta Punjab at the 18th International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) awards.

The best direction award went to Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury for his much-acclaimed film Pink, a female-centric court room drama.

Alia’s turn as a young Bihari migrant girl won her the best actress trophy. Her co-star, Shahid, was honoured with the best actor gong for his portrayal of a drug-addict rockstar, Tommy Singh.

Sonam Kapoor’s Neerja, a biopic on the life of flight attendant Neerja Bhanot, received the best picture award.

Music maestro AR Rahman was honoured with a special award for completing 25 years in the industry.

Filmmaker Karan Johar’s Ae Dil Hai Mushkil dominated the music categories. The best music director award went to Pritam, the best playback singer male award was given to Amit Mishra for Bulleya and Amitabh Bhattacharya won the best lyricist award for Channa mereya.

The best playback singer female award was shared by Tulsi Kumar for Soch na sake (Airlift) and Kanika Kapoor for Da da dasse (Udta Punjab). Disha Patani and Punjabi star Diljit Dosanjh won their first ever IIFA awards for their debut Hindi films M S Dhoni and Udta Punjab, respectively.

The event witnessed several high-octane performances. Varun paid a tribute to his father, filmmaker David Dhawan, who completed 30 years in the film industry. He treated fans by performing on hit numbers from ‘90s movie Judwaa.

There was also a dance face-off between original Judwaa star Salman and Varun, who is reprising the superstar’s character in the film’s reboot.

Unlike previous editions, no international stars were part of the IIFA celebrations this year.