IIFA Awards 2011 venue at Toronto

IIFA Awards 2011 venue at Toronto: The trademark green carpet will be laid out as the superstars of Indian cinema descend upon Canada for an unforgettable weekend of cinematic magic and glitz galore.

The capital city of Ontario, Canada also known as Bollywood North is gearing up full steam as it becomes the first North American city to host the International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) Awards.

The IIFA itinerary is set to include a Film Festival, Film Workshop, Film premiere, Global Business Forum, Fashion Extravaganza along with various Film briefings and Post Parties. Fringe activities are also to take place in parts of Brampton and Mississauga. The IIFA Weekend escalates to a grand finale, the IIFA Awards on the concluding night capping a three-day celebration of Indian Cinema.

A big city with a small town and homely feel, Toronto has a large Indo-Canadian and Asian population. Known for its cultural, entertainment and metropolitan scene, the city annually hosts one of the most prestigious film festivals in the world - the Toronto International Film Festival where films from all over the world are showcased including featured presentations from India. Last year's festival premiered Kiran Rao's Dhobi Ghat and Anurag Kashyap's That Girl in Yellow Boots.

Having traveled to over 9 countries and 3 continents in the last decade, it will be IIFA’s North American Premiere in Canada’s largest city, Toronto. The first IIFA Awards were held at the Millennium Dome in London in 2000 and have gone on to cities like Sun City, Dubai, Amsterdam, Singapore, Yorkshire amongst others, with the most recent being celebrated in Colombo, Sri Lanka.

Speaking on hosting IIFA 2011 in Ontario, Dalton McGuinty, Premier of Ontario shared, “Ontario is thrilled to host the 2011 International Indian Academy Awards. I thank IIFA for the great honor of hosting the weekend in Toronto. With so many film buffs living in Ontario, Indian film stars and executives will feel right at home. We look forward to an eventful and successful Weekend and Awards.”

Aamir Khan's ‘Dhobi Ghat’ movie premiere at Toronto Film Festival

Aamir Khan

Aamir Khan's ‘Dhobi Ghat’ movie premiere at Toronto Film Festival: If his director wife Kiran Rao has put all her efforts and inspiration to make a film like Dhobi Ghat, the producer Aamir Khan, who also plays the lead role, is taking the film to the world. The movie premieres at Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF).

Obviously, producer Aamir is nervous, “Getting ready to leave for Toronto… Too many nervous days too close together,” (sic) tweets Khan.

But the co-director of TIFF, Cameron Bailey, seems to be highly impressed from the film and is confident too. He tells a news agency about Dhobi Ghat, “When I saw it in July in Mumbai, I fell in love with it. It is very beautifully done. It's very provocative, romantic. It really captures the feel of Mumbai - the things I love about the city, the vibrancy of the place, the feel of its streets, and the people…”

Bailey is not only showering praises on Kiran, who he thinks has made a dream directorial debut, but also on Aamir. According to Bailey, he is ‘one of the national treasures of India.’

Dhobi Ghat is set in Mumbai and revolves around three people, Aamir (Arun, in the lead role), Monica Dogra (NRI girl Shai) and Prateik Babbar (washerboy Munna), who are separated by class and language but are drawn together in compelling relationships.

However, what comes as a disappointment is its release date, Aamir has declared that Dhobi Ghat is not coming this December like most of his films but on February next year.