IIFA Notes: Bollywood comes to Tampa, Florida

Along with walking the green carpet and attending Saturday night's awards, Hollywood star John Travolta will receive a special honor at the awards, organizers said Monday.

Based on his dancing, singing and acting in movies likeSaturday Night Fever, Pulp Fiction, Grease and Get Shorty,an IIFA news release described Travolta as the "most popular all-time international star in India." The awards show is being recorded for broadcast in June.

From one villain to the next

Actor Vivek Oberoi is nominated for an IIFA award for best performance in a negative role, but he was all smiles on the green carpet at Tampa International Airport on Monday. Asked what he was looking forward to, Oberoi said, "all of this," sweeping his hand toward the crowd, which whooped."We have a huge following here in America," he said, but face-to-face interaction is rare, so "this is nice. This is us finally getting to see each other." Oberoi said he has another bad-guy role coming up, having just voiced, in Hindi, Jamie Foxx's Electro character in The Amazing Spider-Man 2 for its Indian release. Just as Indians love those kinds of U.S. movies, he hoped more Americans would take to Indian cinema.

"It's fun, and that's how it should be," he said. "Anything creative should have no boundaries or borders."

IIFA events

Wednesday

IIFA Stomp, Bollywood dance music festival, Curtis Hixon Waterfront Park, Tampa, 7 to 11 p.m. Free and open to the public. Music, including official IIFA track Do Da Tampa, with DJ Ravidrums, known to fellow Chamberlain High graduates as Ravi Jakhotia.

Thursday

Start of two-day Global Business Forum, Tampa Convention Center, 8:30 a.m. Register: usf.edu/business/iifa/registration.aspx

Start of three-day IIFA Expo with Indian products, services and fashion shows, noon to 8 p.m., Tampa Convention Center. Free and open to the public. Remarks by Anil Kapoor at 1 p.m. Raffle to win a chance to meet Parineeti Chopra. Continues 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

Friday

"Magic of the Movies & Technical Awards" show, 7 p.m., MidFlorida Credit Union Amphitheatre. (Green carpet, 4:30 p.m.)

Saturday

IIFA Awards, 8 p.m., Raymond James Stadium. (Green carpet, 4:30 p.m.)