The three-day International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) events kicked off in Abu Dhabi on Friday with the IIFA Utsavam 2024 celebrating the best of Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Kannada cinema.
The star-studded event was attended by the who’s who of the south Indian industries including Mani Ratnam, Chiranjeevi, Nandamuri Balakrishna, A.R. Rahman, Rana Daggubati, Samantha Ruth Prabhu and Venkatesh Daggubati. Bollywood celebrities, including Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Shahid Kapoor, Ananya Panday, Kriti Sanon, Karan Johar, Javed Akhtar and Shabana Azmi also joined in.
Mani Ratnam’s period epic Ponniyin Selvan: II (PS 2) won the filmmaker the best director award, while Rajinikanth’s Jailer won the best film award. Nani (Dasara) won the best actor (Telugu) award, and Vikram (PS 2) bagged the best actor (Tamil) trophy. Aishwarya Rai Bachchan was declared the best actress for PS 2.
A.R. Rahman won two IIFA Utsavam awards for PS 2 for best background score and best music. Chiranjeevi was also honoured at the event for outstanding contribution to Indian cinema.
The evening was marked by dazzling performances by Prabhu Deva, Raashii Khanna, Shane Nigam, Rockstar DSP, Pragya Jaiswal, Regina Cassandra, Aradhanaa and Malashree.
Here are the winners of IIFA Utsavam 2024:
- Best Picture (Tamil): Jailer
- Best Actor (Telugu): Nani (Dasara)
- Best Actor (Tamil): Vikram (Ponniyin Selvan: II)
- Best Actress (Tamil): Aishwarya Rai Bachchan (Ponniyin Selvan: II)
- Best Director (Tamil): Mani Ratnam (Ponniyin Selvan: II)
- Best Music Direction (Tamil): A.R. Rahman (Ponniyin Selvan: II)
- Outstanding Achievement in Indian Cinema: Chiranjeevi
- Outstanding Contribution to Indian Cinema: Priyadarshan
- Woman of the Year in Indian Cinema: Samantha Ruth Prabhu
- Best Performance in a Negative Role (Tamil): SJ Suryah (Mark Antony)
- Best Performance in a Negative Role (Telugu): Shine Tom Chacko (Dasara)
- Best Performance in a Negative Role (Malayalam): Arjun Radhakrishnan (Kannur Squad)
- Best Performance in a Supporting Role (Male – Tamil): Jayaram (Ponniyin Selvan: II)
- Best Performance in a Supporting Role (Female – Tamil): Sahasra Shree (Chithha)
- Golden Legacy Award: Nandamuri Balakrishna
- Outstanding Excellence in Kannada Cinema: Rishab Shetty
- Best Debut (Female – Kannada): Aradhana Ram (Kaatera)
The second day of IIFA will see Bollywood icons Shah Rukh Khan, Vicky Kaushal and Karan Johar take the stage as hosts for the IIFA Awards night. Rekha is set to make a long-awaited return to the IIFA stage for a performance, adding to the evening’s allure.
The festivities will culminate on September 29 with the exclusive, invitation-only IIFA Rocks, featuring live performances from renowned artists such as Honey Singh, Shilpa Rao and Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy.