IIFA Awards 2024: The ‘king’ reclaims the crown as Shah Rukh Khan wins top honour, enthralls fans

Shah Rukh Khan at the International Indian Film Academy Awards 2024.
| Photo Credit: IIFA/Instagram

Seated to witness the magic of his much-celebrated aura, fans at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi got their money’s worth as Shah Rukh Khan seized the night with his impeccable wit and charisma. The International Indian Film Academy Awards reiterated the grand resurgence of one of Bollywood’s biggest superstars.

“It’s good to be back,” said Shah Rukh, holding the trophy for the Best Actor award. He clinched the top honour for his action-packed performance in Atlee’s Jawan (2023). “The king reclaims his crown,” said filmmaker Karan Johar, who co-hosted the awards ceremony with Shah Rukh Khan, Vicky Kaushal, Abhishek Banerjee and Siddhant Chaturvedi.

Shahid Kapoor at the IIFA Awards 2024.
| Photo Credit:
IIFA/Instagram

The banter on stage centred around Shah Rukh Khan’s comeback, as the actor enjoyed a terrific 2023. The blockbuster performances of Pathaan, Jawan and his maiden collaboration with Rajkumar Hirani for Dunki not just revived the beleaguered Hindi film industry, but also put Shah Rukh Khan back on top of the game. The seasoned star, who was in a desperate quest to reinvent himself, wrote a new chapter in his career with two dynamic action-oriented roles in Pathaan and Jawan.

Fans cheered for their star as he asked Vicky Kaushal, “aur kithna comeback karoon?” (How many more comebacks should I make?). Shah Rukh perfectly balanced his well-timed jokes on new-generation actors with his energetic performances, including the viral hits ‘Tauba Tauba’ from Bad Newz and ‘Oo Antava Mawa’ from Pushpa (2021).

Rani Mukerji won the Best Actor Female award for her performance of a mother fight for the custody of her children in Mrs Chatterjee vs Norway. Hema Malini, the ‘Dream Girl’ of Hindi cinema, was honoured with a life-time achievement award while Karan Johar was honoured for completing 25 years in the industry. Ranbir Kapoor’s 42nd birthday got better as Animal, his blockbuster film with Sandeep Reddy Vanga, bagged five awards, including the Best Film prize.

Rani Mukerji with the Best Actor award.
| Photo Credit:
IIFA/Instagram

On September 27, 2024, the IIFA Utsavam ceremony saw some of the biggest stars of southern India get together for an entertaining night of performances and recognitions. ‘Mega Star’ Chiranjeevi, who recently became the holder of the Guinness World Record for being the Most Prolific Star/Actor/Dancer in the Indian industry, was bestowed with the award for his outstanding contribution to Indian cinema.

As he collected the award, Chiranjeevi was joined by his contemporary Nandamuri Balakrishna and star actor Venkatesh. “This is our childhood,” said actor, producer and host Rana Daggubati as the famed trio of Telugu cinema posed for pictures.

Telugu stars Venkatesh, Chiranjeevi and Nandamuri Balakrishna.
| Photo Credit:
IIFA Utsavam/Instagram

Ace filmmaker Mani Ratnam won the Best Director Award for Ponniyin Selvan II, the second part of his two-part historical drama. The Aishwarya Rai, Vikram starrer was the biggest winner of the night, clinching seven awards.

Jeo Baby’s Kaathal, featuring veteran Mammootty in the role of an closeted gay man, was adjudged the Best Malayalam film. Sensational composer Sushin Shyam walked away with two awards (Best Playback Singer and Best Music) for his work in Romancham.

The hit Kannada two-part relationship drama Sapta Sagaradaache Ello bagged five awards with Rakshit Shetty and Rukmini Vasanth winning the best actors male and female respectively for the Hemanth M Rao-directorial. Kaatera, headlined by actor Darshan — who is currently in prison for his alleged involvement in the murder of one Renukaswamy — won the Best Film award.