Reality check: Times of India Film Awards missed big Bollywood stars, including Aamir Khan

by Charlie Smith on April 8th, 2013 at 11:31 AM

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It was fairly predictable who was in the serious running for Times of India Film Awards in Vancouver on April 6.

All you had to do was look at who was walking the red carpet at B.C. Place.

You would have seen the most famous Indian actors who won the biggest prizes: Ranbir Kapoor, Abhishek Bachchan, and Priyanka Chopra.

If the truth be known, Bachchan's career has been on a downturn for a few years. His biggest claim to fame these days is his marriage to former Miss World Aishwarya Rai.

Meanwhile, several of Bollywood's brightest stars—such as Hrithik Roshan, Kareena Kapoor, Akshay Kumar, Salman Khan, and Saif Ali Khan—were noticeably absent from Vancouver.

In an amazing coincidence, they were all shut out of the awards.

Let's get serious. What bona fide Indian celebrity wants to fly halfway around the world to sit in the audience in a midsize Canadian city and cheer for another actor?

Then there's the case of India's most talented director, writer, and actor, Aamir Khan, who never attends awards ceremonies.

His smash hit Talaash about an Indian police inspector didn't pick up a single prize.

Any serious aficionado of Bollywood films will tell you that Talaash was far more compelling than Ranbir Kapoor's Barfi.

One of the biggest stars of all, Shahrukh Khan, made the lengthy journey from Mumbai to Vancouver, even though he didn't win for Jab Tak Hai Jaan. This was famed director Yash Chopra's final film.

Khan was a rare exception to the rule of A-list losers not making the trek to Vancouver.

Maybe he came out of the goodness of his heart. But it's not out of the question that a portion of the $11-million provincial subsidy went toward an appearance fee for Khan, who is beloved by the Indian masses at home and abroad.

This man doesn't ordinarily dance for free.

And Khan's friend Karan Johar, one of India's most famous directors, also visited Vancouver.

But I can't imagine so many major Hollywood celebrities missing out on an Oscar red carpet.