'Sarkar Raj' gets green carpet premiere at IIFA

Bangkok, June 6 (IANS) A dazzling 'Green Carpet' welcome was given to Ram Gopal Varma's "Sarkar Raj" that premiered on the opening day of the three-day International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) awards gala here Friday evening as scores of fans chanted "Abhishek, Abhishek", to welcome Bollywood actor Abhishek Bachchan, who stars in the film with his glamorous wife Aishwarya and iconic father Amitabh.

The three Bachchans were the cynosure of all eyes at the Paragon Cineplex, where the movie was screened and which was splashed with numerous posters of the film.

Hordes of Indian and foreign fans were waiting to catch a glimpse of their favourite stars at the venue.

Sahej, 12, a girl from Chandigarh, has come to Bangkok for a vacation. "I came to know that IIFA was taking place here only on the flight. So I came here to watch the stars," a gushing Sahej told IANS.

Another young fan, 16-year-old Rishi from Kolkata, wanted to watch the premiere of the film but could only manage to see the film stars. "I tried to get the passes for the movie, but couldn't. But I am happy to have seen my favourite stars here," he said.

Though the Bachchan family kept their fans waiting for almost two hours, it failed to dampen their enthusiasm to see the stars walk down the green carpet. The IIFA decided on a green carpet premiere to show its concern over global warming.

Amitabh walked in with his wife Jaya Bachchan, followed by Abhishek and Aishwarya. Among other Indian star celebrities at the premiere were Shabana Azmi, Javed Akhtar, David Dhawan, Navin Nischol, Ajay Bijli, Zayed Khan, veteran actress Mumtaz with her daughters and also Neil Nitin Mukesh.

Though Kareena Kapoor, Viveik Oberoi, Urmila Matondkar and Diya Mirza are here to attend the IIFA, they preferred to give the "Sarkar Raj" premiere a miss.

Thai princess Sirindhorn, who was to attend the premiere, arrived late amid tight security after all the stars had settled down, and made a quiet exit.

The high numbers of foreign media covering the IIFA is an indication of the success of the event. Foreign media persons even sat and watched "Sarkar Raj".

The IIFA, which aims to promote brand Bollywood beyond Indian shores, is in its ninth edition. It has travelled across three continents and eight countries since its inception in 2000. Last year it was held in Yorkshire.

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Sarkar Raj