Coronavirus: Bollywood awards IIFA 2020 postponed due to the outbreak

Indore, March 06: While the coronavirus is spreading rapidly all over the world and now heading its way in India too, the International Indian Film Academy has decided to postpone the IIFA Awards 2020, that were originally scheduled to be held in Indore, Madhya Pradesh, from 27 to 29 March.

 

 

“With due regard to the growing concerns around the spread of the COVID-19 virus and keeping the health and safety of IIFA’s fans and the general community at large, after consulting the Madhya Pradesh government, the IIFA management, and stakeholders from the film industry, it has been decided to postpone to a later date the much-awaited IIFA Weekend and Awards 2020 celebrations which were originally scheduled at the end of March 2020", IIFA said in a statement.

 

This is after the Indian government on Thursday confirmed 31 positive cases of novel coronavirus so far. A fresh date and plans for hosting IIFA in Madhya Pradesh will be announced at the earliest. "IIFA is fully committed to ensuring the safety of the citizens and legions of IIFA fans who travel from across the globe to attend and experience the magic of IIFA. We sincerely regret the inconvenience caused, and hope that all concerned understand the sensitivity of the situation." It further stated.

 

IIFA has earlier been held in 12 countries, in cities of Dubai, Bangkok, Singapore, Colombo, Toronto, Madrid, and Macau. However this year, the awards in Madhya Pradesh are slated to be hosted by Bollywood superstar Salman Khan and popular actor Riteish Deshmukh in Indore.