Istanbul to host Pakistani stars for the fourth IPPA Awards

Turkey is the place to be this holiday season. The fourth edition of the International Pakistan Prestige Awards (IPPA) are all to take place in Istanbul on December 26.

According to a press release, the awards ceremony will be held at Hilton Istanbul Bomonti Hotel and Conference Centre. The awards aim to present a soft image of Pakistan to the rest of the world by “promoting Pakistani cinema, television, fashion and music, especially at a time when economic activity is at an all-time low, and international events all cancelled or postponed”.

Announcing the event, Ali Malik, who is one of the two organisers of IPPA, said: “We have had to face many challenges this time thanks to the pandemic and have postponed and even changed destinations a few times but were determined that we could continue to keep Pakistan’s flag flying high, in spite of all odds. Therefore, keeping the COVID-19 SOPs in mind, we are organising the event for invitees only, and will execute it without risk to any of the participants and stakeholders.”

Similarly, Mukhtar Ahmed, who is the other organiser said, “We are continuing with IPPA this year although it means less revenue as we won’t be selling any tickets, but we felt it is our duty not to disappoint our fans and supporters, and to continue exposing our talent to the world.”

Speaking to a local media outlet, the organisers shared that they have designed a destination vacation format for this year’s edition.

“We will be selling tickets to people who want to fly out from Pakistan to Istanbul for a few days’ vacation,” said the organisers. “They will be paying for a package which will include airfare, stay in the same hotel as the stars, and attending the awards.”

One of the country’s biggest independent award functions, the first IPPA Awards first took place in 2017 in London. The second edition was also held in London, while the third was held in Oslo, Norway. The ceremony is always a star-studded affair with the likes of Humayun Saeed, Adnan Siddiqui, Hira Mani, Ayesha Omar, Maya Ali and Hania Aamir in attendance.