MUMBAI: While the Hindi film industry is swarming with awards dime to a dozen be it national or international, it was just a while before the Southern movies gave their superstars some global reckoning.

The Tamil film industry held its first ever International Tamil Film awards (ITFA) on 12 October 12 at `The Arena of Stars,' Genting Highlands, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Vijay TV will be telecasting the show on Sunday, 14 December 14, 2003 at 11:30 am.

Anuradha Sriram

ITFA was instituted to appreciate, honor and recognize celebrities and artistes who have contributed toward the success of the Tamil film industry at an international level.

The committee bought together a panel of veterans to adjudge four nominations in each of the 23 categories. The nominations include best film, best actor and best director. There is also a lifetime achievement award.

Simaran reciving the Best Actress Award

The 'City of entertainment' - Genting Highlands was full of Tamilians for all the three award nights from 11 to 13 October, says a Vijay TV release. The awards brought in people from different parts of the world like South Africa, UAE, Australia, US, UK and Sri Lanka.

Vikram with the Best Actor Award

The highlight of the evening, including mesmerizing melodies of UnniKrishnan, Tippu, Harini and dance numbers by Alponza.

According to the release, Star's Tamil channel zeroed on the award function keeping in trend with audince tastes. Besides Tamil Nadu's heartthrobs, the prestigious award function also showcases the brains behind the making of films- the film technicians.

ITFA Awards winners list: