Thousands cheer Bollywood stars

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Posted: 18 years ago

Thousands cheer Bollywood stars

Fans cheered Aishwarya Rai and Abhishek Bachchan

Actors Aishwarya Rai and Abhishek Bachchan have been cheered by thousands of fans at Indian cinema's leading awards ceremony. The celebrity couple were among scores of stars at the International Indian Film Academy Awards in Sheffield. Some 12,000 fans were at the Hallam FM Arena, with more at BBC big screens in Leeds, Bradford and Rotherham. The film Rang De Basanti - Paint it Yellow - has been voted Best Film at the ceremony. The event is held in a different location around the world each year to increase the profile of Bollywood film. Some 10% of income for Bollywood films come from outside India and Pakistan, while the UK is the second-biggest market for Indian films. Other stars at the awards included Bachchan's father Amitabh, Salman Khan and Shilpa Shetty.

Reality TV star Shilpa Shetty was among the guests at the ceremony

Bachchan told the BBC he found the reception from fans "overwhelming, really overwhelming," while wife Rai, who was named most glamorous actress at the ceremony, said: "We reciprocate the love right back." Winners at the ceremony, which continued into the early hours of Sunday morning, included Hrithik Roshan, who won most glamorous male star. Leading nominees included Rang De Basanti, which has 15 nominations and stars best actor nominee Aamir Khan. Green carpet It also stars Alice Patten - daughter of Chris Patten, the UK's last governor of Hong Kong - and is about a film-maker who wants to make a movie about Indian nationalists who rose up against British rule. Aishwarya Rai, a former Miss World, was nominated for best actress for action thriller Dhoom 2, which itself was up for 10 awards. Veteran actor and politician Dharmendra was due to receive a lifetime achievement award. A green carpet was used at the arena instead of a red carpet to highlight environmental issues.

Sheffield has the third-largest population of British Asians in the UK, and tourist officials say the awards will bring 10m of income to the area.