Salman Khan, Katrina Kaif and 3 Idiotswere the big winners at the Aaj Tak Movie Masala Awards 2009, which were announced on Tuesday. Completely audience driven, the winners were adjudged by viewers through SMS votes and online polling.
Salman walked away with the best actor (male) award for his role in the Boney Kapoor- produced action blockbuster,Wanted, which marked the Bollywood debut of Prabhu Deva as director.
Salman scored as an undercover cop who infiltrates the mafia with the mission of finishing off the underworld, recording 34 per cent of the total votes.
Viewers voted for him over the likes of Aamir Khan, Amitabh Bachchan, Ranbir Kapoor and Shahid Kapoor.
Salman's real- life girlfriend Katrina Kaif was voted the best actress (female) for her role in Rajkumar Santoshi's superhit comedy, Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani. The comic book rom- com cast Katrina opposite Ranbir. Katrina, the reigning glam goddess right now, polled 39 per cent votes, beating Kareena Kapoor, Rani Mukherji, Vidya Balan and Priyanka Chopra.
Katrina is out of the country and couldn't come to personally collect the award.
The trophy for the best director went to Raj Kumar Hirani for 3 Idiots. The film, starring Aamir, R. Madhavan, Sharman Joshi and Kareena, brilliantly narrated the coming- of- age story of three friends in their engineering college days.
Hirani recorded a whopping 41 per cent of the votes. The amicable director wittily summed up his mood on winning with the famous dialogue from his own film: "All is well," adding: "I think things will only get better. We were not expecting such a huge response. Right now, we have reasons to be happy. I feel if you can touch people's hearts, it's a big thing."
Hirani's 3 Idiots, produced by Vidhu Vinod Chopra, was also voted the best film of 2009. The film, which opened last week, has grossed over Rs 100 crore. The industry estimates it could be among Bollywood's biggest hits of all times. 3 Idiots raked in an overwhelming 42 per cent of the votes, beating films such as Wake Up Sid, Kaminey, Paa and Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani. "People called me an idiot so many times that I thought let's change the meaning of the word. I don't hear people calling me 'idiot' any more," said Chopra.
.gif)
