IIFA 2023: Hrithik Roshan, Alia Bhatt win big; Salman Khan steals the show in Abu Dhabi

The two-day Bollywood extravaganza took place at the Etihad Arena, Yas Island

Husain Rizvi

Published: Sun 28 May 2023, 5:59 AM

Last updated: Sun 28 May 2023, 2:58 PM

That's a wrap. The two-day Bollywood extravaganza, the International Indian Film and Academy Awards concluded Saturday night at Yas Island's Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.

While IIFA Rocks was held on Friday, May 26, the main awards night took place on May 27.

Both nights were a celebration of all things Bollywood - from fun-filled interactions at the green carpet to the highly energetic performances by some of our beloved stars including Salman Khan, Nora Fatehi, Varun Dhawan, Rakul Preet Singh and more. And, of course, the superb hosts Farah Khan and Rajkummar Rao for IIFA Rocks, and Abhishek Bachchan and Vicky Kaushal for the main awards night who entertained the audiences throughout the two evenings.

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Check out some of the photos from the event:

The awards night also celebrated the best of Bollywood, its actors and its films. Hrithik Roshan won Best Actor in a Leading Role (Male) for his role in the critically-acclaimed Vikram Vedha (we loved it too!), while Alia Bhatt was named Best Actor in a Leading Role (Female) for her role in Gangubai Kathiawadi.

The War actor, looking dapper as usual, thanked the entire team of Vikram Vedha as he accepted the award. Hrithik, along with Vicky and Abhishek, then performed the iconic step from Kaho Naa Pyaar Hai's song Ek Pal Ka Jeena.

Alia, meanwhile, was absent from the award show due to personal reasons. The award, however, was accepted by the film's producer.

Abhishek Pathak's Drishyam 2, starring Ajay Devgn and Tabu in lead roles, won Best Picture at the award show. R Madhavan, on the other hand, won Best Director for Rocketry: The Nambi Effect.

When it comes to stars in supporting roles, the evergreen Anil Kapoor took home the award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Male) for Jugjugg Jeeyo, and Mouni Roy was named Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Female) for Brahmastra: Part One - Shiva.

Bollywood's go-to fashion designer Manish Malhotra was honoured with the Outstanding Achievement for Fashion in Cinema and Kamal Haasan was honoured for his Outstanding Achievement in Indian Cinema.

Late actor Irrfan Khan's son Babil Khan and Shantanu Maheshwari, both were awarded Best Debut (Male) for Kala and Gangubai Kathiawadi, respectively. Khushali Kumar bagged the Best Debut (Female) award for Dhokha: Round D Corner.

Among many other things, IIFA also celebrated the best in music. Shreya Ghoshal won Best Playback Singer (Female) for the song Rasiya from Brahmastra: Part One - Shiva and Arijit Singh won Best Playback Singer (Male) for Kesariya from the same film, which is directed by Ayan Mukerji, and stars Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt in lead roles.

Even after all the achievers received their respective awards, the night continued until Bollywood's beloved Bhaijaan delivered a show-stopping performance.

Joined on stage by the highly popular dance group Quick Style, Salman gave them a run for their money as he matched steps with the troupe on all his famous songs, both old and new. The 57-year-old actor continued to perform, even with a group of kids, with his gig lasting nearly 15 minutes. The audience cheered on, jumping on their seats, all just to get a glimpse of the Bajrangi Bhaijaan actor. (Ah! Bhaijaan and his unmatched star power.)

Salman's energy did not end there; he walked to all those seated at the front, from Nora Fatehi to Kabir Khan, captivating them with his simple dance steps as he urged them to follow. He then walked up to his mother Salma Khan, planted a kiss on her forehead, held the hands of his nephew and niece and danced with them. That, ladies and gentlemen, was the final act, a show-stopper. And that's what the best of Bollywood is made of, humans like us, celebrating, entertaining and loving our families and friends.

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