IIFA has helped Sri Lanka's image as safe nation: Vivek Oberoi

Actor Vivek Oberoi, who extended his IIFA trip here to help in the rehabilitation in Sri Lanka's war-ravaged areas, says the presence of Bollywood stars has helped country's image as a safe destination.

The country is keen to repair an image battered by the civil war that lasted for close to three decades.

The government rolled out red carpet to Bollywood stars for the India International Academy Awards (IIFA) gala but big names like Amitabh Bachchan and Shah Rukh Khan boycotted the event over protests by Tamil bodies in India.

However, Oberoi said the presence of Bollywood stars will help spread the goodwill.

"You have had many global celebrities come down to Sri Lanka on one platform and endorse your nation and enhance your brand value. These are things that are immeasurable in terms of value. So many fans across the globe suddenly wake up and say wow my favourite star. He went to Sri Lanka. Vivek Oberoi went there with his family. That means it is safe," Oberoi told reporters.

Oberoi visited Sri Lanka's former war-ravaged Vavuniya city and other areas in the district to begin a rehabilitation project there. He, along with his parents, travelled to Vavuniya by air and was accompanied by Abeywardena.

The Company actor held discussions with the District Secretary of Vavuniya, NGOs and the displaced and resettled civilians.

Later he visited resettled people in Nedunkerni in Vavuniya district. The actor is reportedly planning to build a school there with the help of local and Bollywood artistes.

Deputy Economic Development Minister Lakshman Yapa Abeywarden said the award show had generated a lot of good will for Sri Lanka.

"As many as 610 million people in 110 countries will watch the IIFA award ceremony on July 4. Our target is to increase the number of (global) tourists by 50 per cent by 2012. We will achieve our target," Yapa said.

"In the end it is not a question of who arrived or not. What is important is the message that was sent to the world stating there is a conducive atmosphere in Sri Lanka for such an event to be held and anyone could visit the country and spend a holiday in a peaceful atmosphere," the minister added.

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Vivek Oberoi praises Lanka’s post-LTTE efforts to restore normalcy

Praising Sri Lanka for making a genuine effort to help the war displaced people re-build their lives in a post-LTTE era, Bollywood superstar Vivek Oberoi says the recently concluded International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) awards ceremony would enhance Sri Lanka’s image overseas.

Addressing the media yesterday, after visiting Nedunkerni, east of the Kandy-Jaffna A9 road, a smiling Oberoi asserted that nothing could be as positive as the mega event to dispel hostile media coverage of the country, though the war ended last year.

He emphasised that bringing a large number of prominent Indian artistes on one stage was nothing but a tremendous achievement amid an organized bid to discourage the organizers.

Oberoi is the first Indian movie star allowed to tour the former battlefields. Oberoi said that some of his friends and associates had discouraged him from visiting Sri Lanka, particularly the Northern region as local officials were sure to deceive him. But they explained the actual situation and the difficulties faced by them in restoring civilian life in the once war-devastated region, Oberoi said, appreciating the ongoing rehabilitation, reconstruction and resettlement programme.

Commenting on the difficulties experienced by public servants, civilians, particularly the student community, he said that travelling by road was difficult. The overland ride from Vavuniya to Nedunkerni had not been easy due to the poor condition of the roads network, he said. But those who live there had to endure that suffering every day, he said, while reiterating his commitment to help Sri Lankan Tamils.

The outspoken actor dismissed the notion that the Indian film fraternity should have boycotted IIFA awards ceremony in Colombo to pressure the Sri Lankan government. He said that would not have made any difference, but by visiting Colombo, they could bring relief to those who really needed assistance.

He explained the difficult environment in which children displaced by the war as well as former members of the LTTE study. While acknowledging Sri Lanka’s efforts to improve the infrastructure, he said that the school, which he visited on Monday, did not have a roof. "Students studied under a tree," he said, commending the students for what he called a wonderful welcome accorded to him. He assured that action would be taken to provide them with new school buildings and help set up facilities necessary to accommodate about 1,000 students.

Commenting on efforts to dissuade him from taking part in the event in Colombo, Oberoi said that he would not give in to intimidation and threats. Before the event all asked why we wanted to have IIFA in Sri Lanka, but today no one would raise that question, he said.

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IIFA 2010: Behind the scenes

Aamir Khan's '3 Idiots' swept the 11th edition of the International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) Awards that concluded with much fanfare in Colombo early on June 6 but the three-day event will perhaps be remembered more for the absence of Bollywood mega stars led by IIFA brand ambassador Amitabh Bachchan, apparently due to a boycott threatened by southern Indian film distributors of the stars who attended the event.

There was nothing official about the absence of the Bachchans, including Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai, as also Shah Rukh Khan, who had previously announced he would be at Colombo, but it was quite clear that Bollywood was taking the boycott threat seriously.

It's not that the southern Indian distributors are opposed per se to the event going out of India - it has previously been held in cities like Macau, Bangkok and Amsterdam - but they were specifically opposed to Colombo as the venue because of what they perceived to be the excesses by the Sri Lanka armed forces in the final push against the Tamil Tiger rebels last year.

Still, the event weathered the storm, as was evident at the ritzy grand finale, the highpoint of which was Hrithik Roshan's mindblowing livewire performance when he not only danced but wowed the audience by singing as well.

The other highlight was the compering by Lara Dutta along with Boman Irani-Riteish Deshmukh who once again enthralled the audience with their excellent chemistry on an extravagant set.

But then, there were the low points too - for instance, Bipasha Basu's performance on the awards night and the humid weather.

And, the threatened boycott by the South Indian Film Chamber of Commerce meant the glamour quotient on the final light was much lower than in the past, with it being left to the likes of Salman Khan, Sanjay Dutt, Anil Kapoor, Saif Ali Khan, Kareena Kapoor, Hrithik Roshan and Bipasha Basu to fly the Bollywood flag.

Nevertheless, Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa was ecstatic about hosting the awards ceremony in his country.

"Thank you IIFA for choosing my country as the venue for this extravagant event. It will help us in bridging the gap between the two nations in a simple manner," Rajapaksa said.

The grand finale apart, there was much more to the three-day event

On the first day, the IIFA Fashion Extravaganza saw the participation of many Bollywood actors and Sri Lankan cricketer Kumar Sangakkara, who walked the ramp for leading Indian and Sri Lankan designers. This was backed by a live musical performance by composers Salim-Suleiman and singers Kailash Kher and Anushka Manchanda.

A charity cricket match was organised the next day between the Sangakkara XI, boasting of some Sri Lankan greats and two teams comprising Bollywood stars and led respectively by Suniel Shetty and Hrithik Roshan. The former but naturally knocked out the Bollywood heroes.

The sixth edition of the FICCI-IIFA Global Business Forum, also on Friday, focused on various strategies to explore and boost business opportunities between India and Sri Lanka. The theme this year was "India - Sri Lanka Partnership: The Way forward", with some key speakers being President Rajapaksa and former Indian junior foreign minister Shashi Tharoor.

The first look of movies like 'Dabaang', 'Lamhaa' and 'Knockout' were also showcased at the event, as was a sneak peek into the multi-million project Kingdom of Dreams - a mega entertainment destination slated to open in Gurgaon ahead of the Commonwealth Games in October.

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Vivek's got a new project in Sri Lanka

Vivek Oberoi, who hopes to build schools for orphans and underprivileged children in Sri Lanka, visited the Vavuniya district in the north region to understand the needs of Tamil people there.

"The Oberoi family is off to Vavuniya to spend the day understanding the needs of the Tamil people and to take our first major step towards Project Hope ... identifying a place to build our school for the orphaned and underprivileged children. We need your prayers and support," Vivek posted on his Twitter page along with a family photograph.

As part of Project Hope, the actor wants to build schools to rehabilitate Tamil children in war-affected regions. He was in the country to attend the International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) awards that concluded on June 5.

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Aishwarya Rai defended by Vivek Oberoi in IIFA ceremony

It’s no surprise that Vivek Oberoi’s ex flame Aishwarya Rai didn’t show up at the IIFA Awards 2010 as her father-in-law himself had sidelined the show owing to protests and turmoil despite him being the brand ambassador.

But when a certain Salman Khan spat sarcasm at Amitabh, Abhishek and Aishwaray Rai Bachchan for not supporting the people in times of adversity, Vivek directly defended them even boldly taking their names.

Speaking to the reporters, Vivek went outspoken and said,

“You have to respect the fact that people have work for which they sometimes cannot turn up at events. It happens to each one of us. I know everyone wanted to see the Bachchan family in Colombo. They are being missed by the people of Sri Lanka as well as by everyone of us. Abhishek and Aishwarya have a film up for release and, trust me, there is a lot of work and stress during a release (of Raavan). So, give them a respite. I’m sure they would be missing being here too.”

So, what prompted Vivek to go ahead and take such a strong stance for someone who has always cold shouldered him? People may call it a gimmick or a bold publicity stint (and it may very well be so) but more than that the likelihood points towards the theorem that he’s desperate to regain a warm cordial relationship with the biggies like Ash or Salman.

He has been trying to leave no stone unturned to salvage something out of his sinking career and, while I am typing this article out, he must be hoping that the Bachchan brigade do acknowledge and appreciate his gestures.

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IN PICS: IIFA Awards 2010 Performances

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IN PICS: Glittering Stars at IIFA Awards 2010

PHOTOS: AFP/NDTV

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