The 16th edition of the most spectacular celebration of Indian Cinema globally, the International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) Awards has announced the much anticipated list of nominations in the popular category. The IIFA Weekend & Awards will take place at Stadium Putra in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from 5th-7th June 2015.
 
Indian Cinema saw a fantastic year in 2014 with some exceptional films taking the box-office by storm. Leading the polls is the heart-warming ‘2 States’ with 9 nominations followed closely by Vishal Bhardwaj’s hard-hitting ‘Haider’ which garnered 8 nominations. Rajkumar Hirani’s inspiring ‘PK’ achieved 6 nominations and the naively stirring Kangana Ranaut starrer ‘Queen’ received 5 nominations. Some of the other noteworthy mentions this year also up for awards are Imtiaz Ali’s ‘Highway’ and ‘Ek Villain’.
Speaking on the nominees, Andre Timmins, Director – Wizcraft International Entertainment Pvt. Ltd, said, “It is amazing how Indian cinema is growing strength by strength every year. It has been a spectacular year for Indian Cinema across genres of films and a multitude of talent on and off screen. Some of the biggest films are contending for awards this year and the nominations reflect the talent and achievements of our Indian Film Industry.”
Contenders for the Leading Role Male this year are Shahrukh Khan (Happy New Year), Aamir Khan (PK), Hrithik Roshan (Bang Bang, Arjun Kapoor (2 States), Shahid Kapoor (Haider) and Randeep Hooda (Highway). The Leading Role Female category sees Deepika Padukone (Happy New Year), Priyanka Chopra (Mary Kom), Rani Mukherji (Mardaani), Anushka Sharma (PK), Kangana Ranaut (Queen) and Alia Bhatt (2 States) vie for the award this year. The Best Director category sees a host of worthy nominees like Vikas Bahl (Queen), Vishal Bhardwaj (Haider), Rajkumar Hirani (PK), Abhishek Varman (2 States) and Imtiaz Ali (Highway).