The patriotic film Rang De Basanti has swept the International Indian Film Academy Awards — the Bollywood equivalent of the Oscars.

Rang De Basanti (Paint it Yellow), a patriotic film about disillusioned youth, won five "Boscars," including best picture, best supporting actress and best musical direction.

Bollywood power couple Aishwarya Rai and Abhishek Bachchan arrive for the International Indian Film Academy Awards.
(Dave Thompson/Associated Press)

"It has been a truly fabulous year," the director, Rakesh Mehra, said during the awards ceremony Sunday in Sheffield, England. (The event is held in a different location each year to bring attention to the Mumbai-based film industry.)

"2006 has been a landmark year for Indian cinema and this award is much more special when you know it is among great films. 2006 belongs to a changing time in Indian cinema."

Other winners included Hrithik Roshan, who won most glamorous male star and was also awarded the best actor prize for his portrayal of a superhero in Krrish, Hindi for There's No one Like You.

"May our children never [be] afraid to dream the impossible because if someone like me can get this far, nothing is impossible," Roshan said.

The best actress award went to Rani Mukherji for Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna (Never Say Goodbye), a film about adultery and marriage woes.

The musical comedy Lage Raho Munnabhai was the second biggest winner of the evening, taking home three awards.

The star-studded event brought out a slew of celebrities including power-couple Aishwarya Rai and Abhishek Bachchan.

Bollywood celebrities paraded down a green carpet rather than a red carpet to bring attention to global warming.

Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty accepts a special award for the way she handled herself amid racial slurs on the reality TV show Big Brother.
(Dave Thompson/Associated Press)

Starlet Shilpa Shetty, as famous in Britain as she is in India after her racially charged stint on the British version of Big Brother, sang a medley of high-energy hits from Bollywood films.

Shetty said highlighting climate change is especially important because of India's rapidly developing industrial sector.

"India can be a very important hand globally in this issue," Shetty said.

She also accepted a special award at the event for the way she conducted herself during her controversial appearance on Big Brother.

The five-hour show didn't end until nearly 2 a.m. local time, causing security to be on high alert as some of the 12,000 spectators became aggressive.

The awards show was the climax of four days of events throughout Yorkshire including a celebrity cricket match and business conference.

More than 500 million people were expected to watch the awards, which changes locations every year in an effort to bring attention to Bollywood.

 

With files from the Canadian Press