Bollywood
actress
Shraddha
Kapoor
sent
the
crowd
into
raptures
with
her
sizzling
dance
numbers
while
singer
Monali
Thakur
performed
her
peppy
hits
to
set
the
stage
on
fire
at
the
Indian
Premier
League
(IPL)
extravaganza
ahead
of
Kolkata
Knight
Riders'
(KKR)
first
home
game
at
the
Eden
Gardens
here
on
Thursday.
In
front
of
a
half-full
stadium
with
the
match
one-and-half
hours
away
from
the
start,
Shraddha,
whose
next
film
'Half
Girlfriend'
is
scheduled
for
a
May
release,
turned
on
the
heat
in
the
final
segment
of
the
21-minute
programme,
dancing
to
her
hit
numbers.
Starting
with
"Tum
Hi
Ho" from
the
blockbuster
"Aashiqui
2",
the
30-year
old
shook
a
leg
to
"Galliyan"
from
"Ek
Villain",
"The
Humma
Song
(OK
Jaanu)"
and
"Main
nachu
aj
Cham
Cham
Cham
(Baaghi)"
in
front
of
father
and
veteran
actor
Shakti
Kapoor
who
was
in
the
stands.
Sporting
a
golden
top
and
purple
coloured
track
pants,
the
gorgeous
Mumbaikar
looked
stunning.
Monali,
who
hails
from
the
city,
crooned
a
number
of
hits
including
"Moh
Moh
ke
Dhaage",
"Tune
Mari
Entriyaan" and
the
title
track
of
Badrinath
Ki
Dulhaniya
which
drew
the
loudest
cheers.
The
function
was
a
fusion
of
Bengal's
traditional
chhau
dance
and
Punjab's
bhangra,
commencing
with
a
performance
by
Shillong
Chamber
Choir.
The
chhau
dancers
introduced
the
KKR
team,
while
KXIP
made
an
entry
with
the
bhangra
dance
troupe
in
the
third
segment
of
the
opening
ceremony.
Home
team
captain
Gautam
Gambhir
handed
Aussie
counterpart
Glenn
Maxwell
a
"Spirit
of
Cricket" token.
A
one-minute
AV
was
displayed
showing
the
two-
time
IPL
champions'
journey
from
2008
till
now.
This
is
the
first
time
that
there
are
eight
opening
ceremonies
taking
place
across
eight
venues.