Tue. Mar 19th, 2024

The Bollywood star and former Miss World Aishwarya Rai Bachchan received the inaugural Meryl Streep Award for Excellence at the first Women in Film and Television (WIFT) India Awards, which has been established to honor the best female talent in Bollywood and Hollywood.

The Meryl Streep Award for Excellence is exclusive to the annual WIFT India Awards. Back in 1998, Streep herself was honoured with the WIF Crystal award. Organized by Women in Film L.A., the Crystal + Lucy Awards marked their 45th anniversary this year.

In a statement to The Hollywood Reporter, WIFT India said that Bachchan received the award for showcasing a “distinction in her craft and for expanding the role of women within the entertainment industry.”

“Whether it is her extraordinary body of work or her charitable endeavors, Ms. Streep is an inspiration for all,” said WIFT India founding president Petrina D’Rozario. She added, “Our aim here is to encourage others to think outside the norm of gender-based hiring practices and give females of all nationalities an equal chance to vie in fields dominated by men.”

Bachchan’s two-decade career has seen her deliver major hits such as Kandukondain Kandukondain, a Tamil language adaptation of Jane Austen’s novel Sense and Sensibility, and Bollywood romantic drama Devdas, which received a special screening at Cannes in 2002. Her international credits include British director Gurinder Chadha’s 2004 release Bride and Prejudice, a Bollywood-inspired take on Austen’s Pride and Prejudice.

Zoya Akthar received the Wyler Award for Excellence in Direction. She helmed Bollywood hits such as Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara and Dil Dhadakne Do. The award is named after legendary Oscar-winning director William Wyler (Ben-Hur, Roman Holiday) and his daughter Catherine Wyler, who was senior vp production at Columbia Pictures.

“The Wyler Award is so surreal for me as I grew up in Bombay [Mumbai], got a video player in the eighties and one of the first films I ever saw on it was Ben-Hur,” Akhtar told THR.

WIFT India was set up in 2012, adding to WIFT International’s global network of over 40 chapters worldwide with over 10,000 members. The nonprofit is dedicated to advancing professional development and achievement for women working in all areas of film, television and digital media.

By Rashmi

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