Indian "Oscar" to be unveiled in Macao

As an effort to promote Indian movies globally, the 10th edition of the International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) Awards and Indian movie festival will be held in Macao's largest casino resort The Venetian Macao next month, the IIFA announced here on Friday.

The IIFA Awards is the biggest South Asian media event with a viewership of almost 600 million worldwide, the organizer said in a press release.

Along with the ceremony of the Awards, the events will also comprise world premieres of Indian films, various film festival activities, FICCI IIFA Global Business Forum and IIFA Fashion Extravaganza during the event period of June 11 to 13.

The nominees of the IIFA Awards have already been announced in India with six Indian films being nominated for best picture this year, including A Wednesday that depicts the emotions of a common man in a city succumbed to terrorist activity, the action thriller Ghajni, epic movie Jodhaa Akbar which brings to light an important but forgotten bit of Indian history, and other movies.

As the film Slumdog Millionaire, which stars Indian actors and tells the rags to riches story of a boy from an Indian slum, swept eight Oscars including best director and best picture this year, the Indians are ready to push their film industry to a higher level. The organizer disclosed there was a "98 percent" possibility that the actors of the Slumdog Millionaire might participate in the upcoming IIFA event in Macao.

Being an organization dedicated to promoting Indian Cinema beyond India, IIFA has celebrated the previous editions of the IFFA Award in various nations worldwide, such as London of United Kingdom, Johannesburg of South Africa, Genting Highlands of Malaysia, Amsterdam of Holland, Bangkok of Thailand, etc.