B-Town descends on Chinatown

On Saturday, Macau will witness more action and drama than a Bollywood potboiler as stars descend upon the Las Vegas-style city to attend this year's Zee Cine Awards.

The ceremony at the CotaiArena at the Venetian Resort is tipped to attract some of the biggest names in showbiz, including Shah Rukh Khan, Katrina Kaif, Priyanka Chopra, Ranbir Kapoor, Shahid Kapoor and Vidya Balan. Going by the blockbuster-heavy nominations list, it's not just the stars who'll be jostling for space on the red carpet.

The competition among filmmakers will be equally fierce as B-Town's feel-good tale Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (ZNMD), with its top score of five nominations, battles it out with a host of acclaimed films. The winners are chosen in an online poll by the people.

"It's a wonderful feeling to be appreciated. While I was making the film, our focus was on making a good, fun film and not on awards," said Zoya Akhtar, director of the Hrithik Roshan-starrer ZNMD.

ZNMD's Kalki Koechlin is more heavy-handed with her compliments. "It's fantastic that ZNMD is getting so many nominations. I am happy for all of us, especially Zoya, who is the star of the film for me. Yes, I will be going," she confirmed to tabloid! via SMS.

ZNMD will be up against Salman Khan's blockbuster Bodyguard, Balan's dare-to-bare tale The Dirty Picture and Ranbir Kapoor's intense drama Rockstar, all of which have four nominations each. Ajay Devgn's cop drama Singham and King Khan's films RA.One and Don 2 snagged three nominations each.

For some stars, it's going to be a season of firsts. Chopra will be hosting the Zee Cine Awards alongside her Don 2 co-star Khan. In an email to tabloid!, she promised her fans "an evening to remember". She adds that she's not going to be Bollywood's answer to snarky Golden Globes host Ricky Gervais.

"While we do plan to have some fun, I respect my fellow actors and other colleagues from the industry too much to make nasty jibes," said Chopra, who has been nominated for Best Actress for her performance in 7 Khoon Maaf.

Director Imtiaz Ali, who has been nominated for the Best Director Award for his musical saga Rockstar, says his primary reason for heading to Macau is to relive the good times with his crew. "Frankly, one of the reasons why I am going is because Ranbir Kapoor is performing. After a film wraps up, it's difficult to catch up as a team. And it's good to visit China during the Chinese New Year period."

The mood is also upbeat among the Dirty Picture team. The risque drama about a doomed sex siren has climbed its way to the top of the ZCA pile. But it's not just awards that are luring them to Macau.

"All these people who will attend the ceremony are on some level my friends — some are known to me. And votes will swing one way or the other. If you don't win, it doesn't mean your film is bad," director Milan Luthria said.

Bollywood style icon Sonam Kapoor takes it a step further. The Players star was clueless about her nomination in the International Icon Female category. She will face stiff competition from blazing beauties including Kaif, Anushka Sharma, Balan and Kareena Kapoor.

"Wow, really? I didn't know that, but as an actor it's always great to win awards," she said.

Before tabloid! heads to Macau to cover the star-studded ZCA ceremony this weekend, we caught up with some of the key players.