IFFA to honour Rehman, Benegal and Mumtaz

Mumbai, May 17(IANS) Veteran filmmaker Shyam Benegal, actress Mumtaz and music maestro A.R. Rahman will be honoured by the International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) for their contribution to Indian cinema at a ceremony in Bangkok next month.

The awards will be presented on June 6-8.

Benegal, one of the pioneers of the avant-garde film movement in India, will receive the special Idea IIFA Award for his 'outstanding contributions to Indian cinema' while Mumtaz, who rose from humble beginning as a junior artiste to be Bollywood's reigning queen in the 1970s, will be honoured for her 'achievements in Indian Cinema'.

Music director Rahman will receive the award for 'Outstanding contribution by an Indian in international cinema'.

'It is an honour for us at IIFA to present the special category awards to these stalwarts who contributed immensely towards the growth and progress of Indian cinema,' Wiz Sabbas Joseph, director of Wizcraft International, said while announcing the awards here Friday.

Launched in 2000, the annual IIFA media conclave, otherwise known as IIFA Weekend, has since been held in London, Sun City, Johannesburg, Singapore, Genting, Dubai and Amsterdam.

Beamed worldwide through electronic media, the IIFA media conclave is among the world's most watched entertainment events, having a viewership of about 600 million.

Business forums, film premieres, media briefings, awards ceremony and charity fund-raising events will comprise the three-day IIFA extravaganza in Bangkok this year.