MUMBAI: Political heavyweights mingled with stalwarts of the Bhojpuri film industry at a gathering, held today (25 November), to announce the second Bhojpuri Film Awards. The BFA (Bhojpuri Film Awards) 2006 will be held at the Goregaon Sports Club on February 16, 2007. Govinda, who made an appearance at the gathering, was named official Brand Ambassador for the event.
The Chief Guest for the evening was Subhod Kant Sahay — Union Minister of State for Food Processing Industries. He was also present at the First Bhojpuri awards held last year. Other bigwigs that comprised the panel at the event were: Kripa Shankar Singh, MLA of Maharashtra, Navdeep Singh, Inspector General of Police, Rajasthan, Kumkum, the actress who appeared in the first ever Bhojpuri film in the `60s, and Govinda himself.
Vinod Gupta, president – BFA and Editor of the newly-launched magazine Bhojpuri World, said, “We started the Bhojpuri awards last year, because we felt the need to do something to encourage the industry. It was indeed touching that Dilip Kumar and Saira Banu has graced us with their presence.â€ÂÂ
Actress Kumkum, still resplendent after all these years, nostalgically spoke about the first ever Bhojpuri film
MLA Kripa Shankar Singh regaled everyone by speaking in Bhojpuri and said it was indeed encouraging that even South actresses like Hema Malini were acting in Bhojpuri cinema. Sahay spoke about the magazine which he felt was a great initiative. He said that the wave of Bhojpuri cinema came late, but nevertheless, he hoped it will grow from strength to strength.
Govinda, dressed in a formal black suit, said that “it’s an honour to get the job of the Brand Ambassador of the Bhojpuri Film Awards. I will be available for any service to the industry”.
Other prominent faces included producer Deepak Sawant, riding high on the success of Ganga, director of
