Mubarakan stars add glitz to IIFA celebrations in Dubai

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Mubarakan stars add glitz to IIFA celebrations in Dubai

Published: Mon 31 Jul 2017, 5:15 PM

Last updated: Sat 12 Aug 2017, 6:33 PM

When US President John F. Kennedy visited West Berlin in 1963 at the height of the cold war and just 22 months after Soviet-run East Germany erected the infamous Berlin Wall, he won over the citizens in a famous speech that started with the line: ""Ich bin ein Berliner" (I am a Berliner).
Bollywood's Mr. India, Anil Kapoor pulled off something similar late Sunday night at the glittering Al Maha Ballroom in Hyatt Regency Dubai Creek Heights, when asked what he'd like to take back with him from Dubai.
"I am the wrong person to ask. I am from Dubai," he said leaving an audience comprising Dubai's crème-de-la-crème including the Consul General of India, Vipul, in complete awe.
It was supposed to be a celebration of a top drawer 18th installment of the Indian International Film Academy (IIFA) awards held on July 14 and 15 in New York with the star cast of the newly released Mubarakan. It turned out to be a one-man show after Bollywood's Mr. India took to the stage.
Somehow it didn't matter that his nephew - almost half his age and Mubarakan co-star - Arjun Kapoor broke into an impromptu gig, shaking a leg to the Mubarakan reprisal of the old classic number Hawa Hawa, moments ago to a rapturous crowd. When the Oscar winning Slumdog Millionaire star spoke, the crowd listened in rapture.
Kapoor may be turning 61 later this December but he still remains the charmer he always has been and sure has a way with words. "I will be biased. I love everything about this country. I love the people, the rulers who have done such a great job. I first came here 30 years ago and from that time the transformation is absolutely fantastic."
Earlier when the same question was thrown to fellow actors Athiya Shetty, she said she would like to take back bags full of dates while Ileana D'Cruz said: "I have always loved how pretty the city looked and I wish I could take that back with me as a memory."
Arjun Kapoor, who plays Karan Singh Bajwa in the multi-starrer that released in the UAE on July 27, said: "It is the people and the warmth in their hearts that make Dubai and I would like to carry that feeling back every time I come here."
The rest of the night saw highlights from the 18th IIFA Awards played out on a giant screen as the guests ended the night with a three-course dinner.
abhishek@khaleejtimes.com

By Abhishek Sengupta

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