IIFA Awards: 'Shershaah' wins big; Vicky, Kriti named best actors
The illustrious Bollywood extravaganza, the International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) Awards culminated in Abu Dhabi on Saturday with much aplomb. The star-studded gala was organized after a two-year-long break due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The who's who of Bollywood turned up in their sartorial best for the cinematic carnival, hosted by Salman Khan, Riteish Deshmukh, and Maniesh Paul. Take a look at the winners.
Vicky Kaushal bagged the Best Actor (Male) in a Leading Role award for Shoojit Sircar's Sardar Udham for essaying the titular role of the legendary freedom fighter. Ranveer Singh and Sidharth Malhotra were also nominated in this category. Meanwhile, Kriti Sanon took home the Best Actor (Female) in a Leading Role award for her heartfelt portrayal of a surrogate mother in Laxman Utekar's Mimi.
Though Sidharth Malhotra lost out on the Best Actor award, portraying the story of PVC Captain Vikram Batra, Shershaah moved the jury's hearts, winning the Best Picture award. Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior, 83, and Thappad were also nominated in this category. Moreover, Shershaah was leading the nomination race with 12 nods, while 83 had 9 nods. Shershaah director Vishnuvardhan bagged the Best Director award.
Jubin Nautiyal clinched the Best Male Playback Singer award for the romantic number Raatan Lambiyan from Shershaah. He was competing with Arijit Singh for Lehra Do, Rait Zara Si, and Aabaad Barbaad and B Praak for Mann Bharryaa. Asees Kaur won the Best Female Playback Singer award, also for Raatan Lambiyan, after scoring an edge over Shreya Ghoshal, Priya Saraiya, and Jasleen Royal.
While the jury easily picked their favorite singers, it seemed like the decision to arrive at the Best Music Director Award was not just as easy. Tanishk Bagchi, Royal, Javed-Mohsin, Vikram Montrose, B Praak, and Jaani as well as music maestro AR Rahman shared the award for Shershaah and Atrangi Re, respectively. Pritam Chakraborty was also in the race for 83 and Ludo.
Meanwhile, Kausar Munir won the Best Lyricist honor for Lehra Do (83). This year, the Best Debut Awards went to Ahan Shetty (Tadap 2) and Sharvari Wagh (Bunty Aur Babli 2). On the other hand, Anurag Basu won the Best Story (Original) award for Ludo, while Kabir Khan and Sanjay Puran Singh Chauhan picked up the Best Story (Adapted) trophy for 83.
Pankaj Tripathi was the jury's choice for the Best Actor in a Supporting Category (Male) for his role as a gangster in Ludo. Notably, he was previously nominated in this category for Newton and Stree, too, but had missed out on the honor. This year, he was also nominated for 83 in this category. Sai Tamhankar (Mimi) won the Best Supporting Actor (Female) award.
