Vishal, Shekhar bag Asian Film Award for OSO

Vishal and Shekhar are happy that their soundtrack for Om Shanti Om is making waves at an international platform. Though they are waiting for their first major popular award for Om Shanti Om in Mumbai, in Hong Kong their work has already been recognized.

At the prestigious Asian Film Awards held very recently, the duo won an award for 2008's biggest blockbuster, both theatrically and musically, Om Shanti Om. The film was the only Indian entry amongst other Asian films. Also, the awards catered to mainstream cinema which only made the competition tougher.

Reveals Vishal Dadlani, who is of course thrilled about him and Shekhar receiving the award, "It has been quite a pleasant surprise to be recognized for our work at an Asian level. Imagine our music was competing against Lust, Caution, a film which is directed by Ang Lee of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Brokeback Mountain and Hulk fame."

He goes on to add, "I am told that these awards hold a similar stature internationally as Pusan International Film Festival, South Korea. It is definitely a matter of pride for us."

Since awards were aimed at mainstream cinema, how were the winners chosen? Was it through SMS/voting from public or there was a jury system? "It was through jury. It consisted of film personalities from across globe like China, Canada, Italy, Hong Kong, US, South Korea, India, France and Germany", says Vishal.

Other Indian nominations in Asian Film Awards were Deepika Padukone for Om Shanti Om and cinematographer Shanker Raman for Frozen. However, they lost out to their other Asian counterparts.

Recently, Vishal and Shekhar also won Central European Bollywood Award as best composers for Om Shanti Om. The duo has been nominated for most major Bollywood awards this year. Though they lost out on Filmfare awards, they have Zee and Apsara awards to look forward to. Also, they are expected to be on the top of the list in soon-to-be-hosted IIFA awards.

"Ya, it was great getting Central European Bollywood Award as well. Now let's see what do Bollywood awards have in store for us", smiles Vishal.