Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan will be honoured by the Locarno Film Festival with its Honorary Leopard achievement award in recognition of his outstanding career in Indian cinema spanning more than 100 films “in a breathtaking multitude of genres,” the festival announced on Tuesday.
Khan will be making the trek to receive the award on Aug 10 at the Swiss fest’s 8,000-seat Piazza Grande open-air venue where his 2022 love triangle drama “Devdas”, in which Khan plays the titular character, a tragic romantic alcoholic, will be screened, followed by an onstage conversation on Aug. 11. “Devdas,” which scored a BAFTA nomination and won numerous Indian awards, marked the first time many Western audience members were exposed to mainstream Bollywood.
On 11 August, Shah Rukh will participate in a conversation at the Forum @Spazio Cinema.
Locarno Film Festival on X posted about Shah Rukh Khan, calling him "a true Indian superstar, a symbol of the vitality of Hindi-language cinema".
As per reports, the Artistic Director of the Locarno Film Festival Giona A. Nazzaro said, “To welcome a living legend like Shah Rukh Khan in Locarno is a dream come true! The wealth and breadth of his contribution to Indian cinema is unprecedented.”
Nazzaro went on to praise Khan as “a king who has never lost touch with the audience that crowned him,” adding that “This brave and daring artist has always been willing to challenge himself while remaining true to what his fans all over the world eagerly expect from his films.”
The 77th edition of the Locarno Film Festival will run from 7-17 Aug, 2024.
The Locarno Film Festival is a major international film festival, held annually in Locarno, Switzerland. Founded in 1946, the festival screens films in various competitive and non-competitive sections, including feature-length narrative, documentary, short, avant-garde, and retrospective programs. The Piazza Grande section is held in an open-air venue that seats 8,000 spectators.
The top prize of the festival is the Golden Leopard, awarded to the best film in the International Competition. Other awards include the Leopard of Honour for career achievement, and the Prix du Public, the public choice award.
To welcome a living legend like #ShahRukhKhan in Locarno is a dream come true.
— Locarno Film Festival (@FilmFestLocarno) July 2, 2024
The actor and film producer – a true Indian superstar, a symbol of the vitality of Hindi-language cinema – will receive our career achievement award, the Pardo alla Carriera, at #Locarno77. pic.twitter.com/NGxbLbgxTS
