NTR is a great son of Indian soil: Amitabh Bachchan

Hyderabad: Receiving the prestigious NT Rama Rao (NTR) award on Thursday, megastar Amitabh Bachchan said that he and NTR shared great relationship and he considered him a great son of Indian soil. Bachchan said he was honoured and humbled to receive such a recognition. He received the award for his contribution to Indian cinema as an actor.

Addressing the Nandi Awards ceremony for 2011 in the city, Amitabh Bachchan said, "I extend my deepest gratitude to Andhra Pradesh government for giving me this prestigious award. NTR and I shared great relationship. We used to exchange ideas and even remade each other's film in our languages. He is a great son of Indian soil."

Amitabh Bachchan said that cinema was a great unifier of the country. "Cinema unifies us despite caste, creed and race. While watching a movie in a cinema hall, we don't care who is seated next to us. We laugh at the same jokes and cry at the same scenes. We should be proud of Indian cinema for integrating us," IANS quotes Big B as saying.

Veteran Bollywood filmmaker Shyam Benegal was presented the BN Reddy award for his directorial excellence. Owing to ill health, Benegal was not present to receive the award. The Raghupathi Venkaiah award for outstanding contribution to cinema was presented to veteran Telugu actor Kaikala Sathyanarayana, known for playing roles of villains and supporting characters.

"I share this honour with all directors, producers, technicians and co-actors I have worked with in my career till date. I believe it's my responsibility to share my success with them as well," IANS quotes Sathyanarayana as saying at the the Nandi Awards ceremony for 2011.

Veteran Telugu producer G Adiseshagiri Rao, brother of Telugu superstar Krishna, received the B Nagireddy Chakrapani award for his involvement in the constant development of Telugu cinema. "Besides all those who have been associated with me in my journey as a producer, I personally need to thank my brother for this honour," Adiseshagiri Rao said.

Amitabh Harivansh Bachchan is one of the greatest and most influential actors in the history of Indian cinema. He first gained popularity in the early 1970s as the angry young man of Hindi cinema and has appeared in over 180 Indian films in his career spanning more than four decades. He has already received several lifetime achievement awards for his contribution to Indian cinema and NTR award is the latest one in the list

Andhra Pradesh State Govt Film awards function was held at Lalita Kalatoranam, Nampally, Hyderabad on April. Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy present the NTR Award to Amitabh Bachchan on this occasion.

Later, Amitabh Bachchan presented the other Nandi Awards to the winners. Mahesh Babu, who won the Best Actor award for his performance in Dookudu, received the award from Big B.

Nagarjuna has won a Special Jury Award for his performance in the movie Rajanna. He received the same award from Amitabh Bachchan at the Nandi Awards.

Nayantara has won Best Actress for his performance in the movie Sri Rama Rajyam. She received the award from Amitabh Bachchan at the Nandi Awards.

Producer Allu Aravid is seen receiving a Nandi Award from Amitabh Bachchan at the Nandi Awards.