The day started off with the extremely eventful arrival of Shah Rukh Khan from the airport to the Fairmont Royal York. His flight had been delayed by several hours and so all of his fans, young and old, waited with bated breath. The screams heard and the pandemonium that occurred once Shah Rukh entered the building had to be experienced to be understood, but suffice it to say that he truly is the King of Hearts.
Once inside the hotel, media personnel were treated with a chance to see SRK once more at the Kingdom of Dreams press conference. Along with Shiamak Davar, Shah Rukh is a brand ambassador for the stunning modern attraction in India. And he is the perfect choice – Kingdom of Dreams is larger than life, as is the charismatic persona of SRK. He fielded questions from the crowd.
He still loves theatre (his favourite play that he has seen being Lion King) and hopes to one day return to it, especially is Shiamak has his way. He maintains that Amitabh Bachchan and Dilip Kumar are his favourite actors. He wished Nelson Mandela a happy birthday and wished his South African fans all the best. He was unable to come to the stadium to see India win the World Cup, but he recalls celebrating with actress Karisma Kapoor. He says that Ra.One’s next trailer will hopefully be released within a month and that Don 2’s trailer will be out along with Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara.
Talking about Kingdom of Dreams Shah Rukh Khan said, “Kingdom of Dreams is reflective of India, its rich culture and seamless heritage and I am proud to promote my country, my India, through this platform. Kingdom of Dreams is a world class experience and I am ecstatic to be a part of an Indian brand that has set the stage for entertainment at its very best.”
Also announced was two new shows, ‘Jhumroo and ‘Here I am –Shiamak’. An out and out musical comedy – ‘Jhumroo’ will be launched in October 2011 at Kingdom of Dreams. In a first of its kind initiative, Kingdom of Dreams will also present ‘Here I am –Shiamak’ a Vegas styled dance and music show fitted perfectly in the state of the art auditorium – Nautanki Mahal.
The bonding between Shah Rukh and Shiamak was heartwarming. Shiamak even went on to say that he felt SRK should be the next Oprah because he is kindhearted, compassionate and generous, much like the famed TV show host. Last but not least, SRK made a point to share how much love he has for the host city of Toronto.
The afternoon consisted of a film premiere of Salman Khan’s very first production ‘Chillar Party’. This premiere took place in Brampton, and though Salman himself was not present, his family made their presence known on the green carpet.
The evening was the very first spectacular event of IIFA, the IIFA Rocks Fashion Show. But it was so much more than a fashion show! With wonderfully charming hosts Karan Johar and Anushka Sharma at the helm, the audience was wowed by musical performances, dance performances and fashion extravaganzas. From Jermaine Jackson and Sonu Nigam giving a heartfelt rendition of the late Michael Jackson’s songs to Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy performing many of their most popular hits, music was alive and well. Fashion couldn’t be far behind! When you have showstoppers like Bret Lee, Bipasha Basu, Sonakshi Sinha, Zayed Khan Rahul Khanna and Neha Dhupia, you most definitely need to showcase the best in fashion. Finally, both Dia Mirza and Mallika Sherawat blew the fans away with their stunning dance performances.
If that wasn’t enough, of course Shah Rukh Khan made an appearance to support his friends Karan and Anushka. Other stars who graced IIFA Rocks include Anil Kapoor, Arbaaz and Mallika Khan, Genelia D’Souza, Rakesh Roshan, Madhavan, Vivek Oberoi, Ameesha Patel and many more.
The big winners of the night for the Technical Awards were Dabangg, Robot, My Name Is Khan and Band Baaja Baarat. It will be exciting to see what the full-fledged awards show tomorrow night has in store!
