Macau:
The International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) awards is all set to make its maiden trip to the US by hosting the 2014 edition at the Tampa Bay in Florida.
"We are extremely excited to announce that IIFA 2014 will travel to US. We had been working on America for the last three years with various cities like Las Vegas, Chicago and New York," Andre Timmins, Director, IIFA and Wizcraft, said.
The new venue aims to cash in on the huge fan base Indian cinema has in the US.
"The maximum grosser of Indian cinema after India is America. We wanted to go to America because the city can transport what we do on ground. So, on that aspect we are happy that Tampa Bay is on," he added.
In the last 14 years, IIFA has travelled to four continents including Africa, Europe, Asia and North America. Andre said that IIFA 2014 will be grand as it will try to connect with the Indians residing in the city.
"It is going to be extra-ordinary as we are going to convert the baseball stadium into a cricket stadium and there will be a match between celebrities and cricketers during award ceremony. IIFA rocks venue is about 21,000 people and main arena has the sitting capacity of 35,000 people. We will connect to all Gujarati and other Indian communities there," Andre said.
The award ceremony will also see performances from noted Hollywood personalities.
Barbados, Las Vegas, Chicago and Johannesburg were other contenders to host the next edition of the Bollywood extravaganza.
