DIFF salutes Bollywood heartthrob

Dubai: Hundreds of fans came to cheer Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan as he accepted a memento from Abdul Hamid Juma, chairman of the Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF), at the Souk Madinat Theatre yesterday.

"This is my first ever international award and I want to thank DIFF from the bottom of my heart," he said as he accepted the DIFF Salutes trophy for his lifelong contribution to cinema.

Speaking to the media later and with his trademark wit and charm, the actor also parried a barrage of questions from the audience ranging from his relationship to the Bachchans to plagiarism of Pakistani films and music by Bollywood.

"I am sure Hindi film producers take the necessary permissions when they use music composed by Pakistani musicians."

Khan defended the song and dance sequences and unique format of Indian films as a valid form of story telling that reflects the country's culture.

"Everyone has a story to tell and their own way of telling it. Acceptance of our cinema in the West is desirable commercially, but we do not need to change our way of telling our stories to be accepted," he said.

Filmmakers share experiences of Gulf cinema

A group of six GCC filmmakers yesterday shared their experiences of Gulf cinema over the past 50 years. Ebrahim Al Zadjale from Oman, Bassam Al Thawadi from Bahrain, Sa'ad Al Faraj from Kuwait, Abdul Aziz Jasem from Qatar, Habib Gholom from the UAE and Abdul Mohsin Al Nemer from Saudi Arabia were present.

By Ameer Al Marzouqi, Staff Reporter