The International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) today confirmed that the bid from the British Columbia government on behalf of Vancouver was rejected for 2013 and the world’s biggest international celebration of Indian cinema would not be held in Vancouver this year.
IIFA shared that the dates and venue for the 2013 edition of the IIFA Weekend and Awards would be formally announced soon.
The need for the clarification was necessary following thousands of fans inquiring about the IIFA celebrations following rumors of a few copycat efforts being attempted in international markets.
Recently, IIFA received a copious number of emails and enquiries from fans in Canada and around the world for tickets to the Awards. But Wizcraft International, the organisers of the extravaganza, today confirmed that the city is out of the running for June 2013. The bidding process for the Awards is currently on with a number of countries from the Middle East, South America, Europe and Africa vying for the biggest extravaganza of Indian Cinema to come to their city.
In 2011, IIFA successfully forayed into North America, marking its premiere in Canada, in the city of Toronto. There has since been keen interest from the country to play host once more in 2013, with Christy Clark, the Premier of British Columbia formally extending an invitation to Wizcraft International Entertainment, the initiators of the unique IIFA Celebrations, to hold its 14th edition in Vancouver.
Embarking on its 14th year, Sabbas Joseph, Director, IIFA & Wizcraft International said, “We are truly excited about the bids we have received from various countries. The decision is subject to many contributing factors that are required of a host destination in terms of support-initiatives for Hindi cinema production, funding and distribution; event-funding, support, facilitation, and infrastructure. We are committed to the film Industry and hosting an IIFA in any destination must meet the larger interests of Indian Cinema and a spectacular-staging of the annual celebration.”
Over the years, IIFA has emerged as the most prestigious platform recognizing excellence in the Indian film industry. The biggest names of Indian cinema congregate at the IIFA Weekend and Awards to celebrate the best contribution made to the world of films in the previous year. IIFA is a global platform that gives the Indian film fraternity an opportunity to reach audiences in international territories and is among the most-watched global events with an audience of over 800 million, annually. A number of destinations have played host including London, Yorkshire, Johannesburg, Dubai, Amsterdam, Singapore, Bangkok, Colombo and Macau.
