All the winners at the IIFA Awards 2023 in Abu Dhabi

Bollywood fantasy film Brahmastra: Part One - Shiva and gritty biopic Gangubai Kathiawadi were the big winners at this year's International Indian Film Academy Awards.

Held across two days, on Friday and Saturday, at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, Bollywood's biggest and brightest stars paid tribute to their colleagues and celebrated with some colourful performances.

The IIFA Awards are an annual celebration of all things Bollywood. Abu Dhabi was hosting the event for the second year in a row.

On Friday at IIFA Rocks, a night dedicated to music and fashion, Sanjay Leela Bhansali's period biopic Gangubai Kathiawadi was the big winner in the technical categories, clinching trophies for cinematography, screenplay and dialogue. The film, about real-life gangster Ganga Harjivandas Kathiawadi, a mafia chief in 1960s Bombay, stars Alia Bhatt in the lead.

Bhatt won the award for Best Actor in a Leading Role (Female) for her performance in the film.

Hrithik Roshan won the leading actor trophy for his role in the Abu Dhabi-shot Vikram Vedha.

Anees Bazmee's Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2, the horror comedy starring Kartik Aaryan and Tabu, won two awards – Best Choreography for title track and Best Sound Design.

Brahmastra: Part One - Shiva won the majority of the awards on Saturday at the gala event, including Best Playback Singer for Shreya Ghoshal (Female) and Arijit Singh (Male), as well as Best Supporting Actor (Female) for Mouni Roy.

Mouni Roy with her Best Supporting Actor (Female) award for Brahmastra: Part One - Shiva. Photo: IIFA

Babil Khan, the son of late Bollywood actor Irrfan Khan, shared the Best Debut (Male) award with Shantanu Maheshwari. Khan was celebrated for his role in the film Qala, and Maheshwari for starring in Gangubai Kathiawadi.

Khushali Kumar won the Best Debut (Female) awards for Dhoka Around the Corner.

Babil Khan and Shantanu Maheshwari shared the Best Debut (Male) award for Qala and Gangubai Kathiawadi, respectively. Photo: IIFA

Here are all the winners at the IIFA Awards 2023:

- Best Film: Drishyam 2

- Best Director: R Madhavan for Rocketry: The Nambi Effect

- Best Actor in a Leading Role (Female): Alia Bhatt for Gangubai Kathiawadi

- Best Actor in a Leading Role (Male): Hrithik Roshan for Vikram Vedha

- Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Female): Mouni Roy for Brahmastra: Part One - Shiva

- Best Actor in a Supporting Role (Male): Anil Kapoor for Jugjugg Jeeyo

- Outstanding Achievement for Fashion in Cinema: Manish Malhotra

- Outstanding Achievement in Indian Cinema: Kamal Haasan

- Best Adapted Story: Aamil Keeyan Khan and Abhishek Pathak for Drishyam 2

- Best Original Story: Perveez Sheikh and Jasmeet Reen for Darlings

- Outstanding Achievement in Regional Cinema: Marathi film Ved, directed by Riteish Deshmukh

- Best Debut (Male): Shantanu Maheshwari for Gangubai Kathiawadi and Babil Khan for Qala

- Best Debut (Female): Khushali Kumar for Dhoka Around the Corner

- Best Playback Singer (Female): Shreya Ghoshal for the song Rasiya from Brahmastra: Part One - Shiva

- Best Playback Singer (Male): Arijit Singh for the song Kesariya from Brahmastra: Part One - Shiva

- Best Music Direction: Pritam for Brahmastra: Part One - Shiva

- Best Lyricist: Amitabh Bhattacharya for the song Kesarya from Brahmastra: Part One - Shiva

- Best Cinematography: Gangubai Kathiawadi

- Best Screenplay: Gangubai Kathiawadi

- Best Dialogue: Gangubai Kathiawadi

- Best Choreography for title track: Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2

- Best Sound Design: Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2

- Best Editing: Drishyam 2

- Best Special Effects (Visual): Brahmastra: Part One - Shiva

- Best Background Score: Vikram Vedha

- Best Sound Mixing: Monica O My Darling

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets

How to apply for a drone permit

Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
Submit their request

What are the regulations?

Fly it within visual line of sight
Never over populated areas
Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
Should have a live feed of the drone flight
Drones must weigh 5 kg or less

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The Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index

Mazen Abukhater, principal and actuary at global consultancy Mercer, Middle East, says the company’s Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index - which benchmarks 34 pension schemes across the globe to assess their adequacy, sustainability and integrity - included Saudi Arabia for the first time this year to offer a glimpse into the region.

The index highlighted fundamental issues for all 34 countries, such as a rapid ageing population and a low growth / low interest environment putting pressure on expected returns. It also highlighted the increasing popularity around the world of defined contribution schemes.

“Average life expectancy has been increasing by about three years every 10 years. Someone born in 1947 is expected to live until 85 whereas someone born in 2007 is expected to live to 103,” Mr Abukhater told the Mena Pensions Conference.

“Are our systems equipped to handle these kind of life expectancies in the future? If so many people retire at 60, they are going to be in retirement for 43 years – so we need to adapt our retirement age to our changing life expectancy.”

Saudi Arabia came in the middle of Mercer’s ranking with a score of 58.9. The report said the country's index could be raised by improving the minimum level of support for the poorest aged individuals and increasing the labour force participation rate at older ages as life expectancies rise.

Mr Abukhater said the challenges of an ageing population, increased life expectancy and some individuals relying solely on their government for financial support in their retirement years will put the system under strain.

“To relieve that pressure, governments need to consider whether it is time to switch to a defined contribution scheme so that individuals can supplement their own future with the help of government support,” he said.

Our family matters legal consultant

Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais

Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.

McLaren GT specs

Engine: 4-litre twin-turbo V8

Transmission: seven-speed

Power: 620bhp

Torque: 630Nm

Price: Dh875,000

On sale: now

First-round leaderbaord

-5 C Conners (Can)

-3 B Koepka (US), K Bradley (US), V Hovland (Nor), A Wise (US), S Horsfield (Eng), C Davis (Aus);

-2 C Morikawa (US), M Laird (Sco), C Tringale (US)

Selected others: -1 P Casey (Eng), R Fowler (US), T Hatton (Eng)

Level B DeChambeau (US), J Rose (Eng)

1 L Westwood (Eng), J Spieth (US)

3 R McIlroy (NI)

4 D Johnson (US)

Kareem Shaheen on Canada

A second lockdown will be especially tough in cold countries

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Justin Trudeau 2.0 will need to take all of Canada with him

The specs: Lamborghini Aventador SVJ

Price, base: Dh1,731,672

Engine: 6.5-litre V12

Gearbox: Seven-speed automatic

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Torque: 720Nm @ 6,750rpm

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Director: Laxman Utekar

Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna

Rating: 1/5

Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026

1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years

If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.

2. E-invoicing in the UAE

Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.

3. More tax audits

Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.

4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime

Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.

5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit

There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.

6. Further transfer pricing enforcement

Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.

7. Limited time periods for audits

Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.

8. Pillar 2 implementation

Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.

9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services

Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.

10. Substance and CbC reporting focus

Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.

Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer

What is blockchain?

Blockchain is a form of distributed ledger technology, a digital system in which data is recorded across multiple places at the same time. Unlike traditional databases, DLTs have no central administrator or centralised data storage. They are transparent because the data is visible and, because they are automatically replicated and impossible to be tampered with, they are secure.

The main difference between blockchain and other forms of DLT is the way data is stored as ‘blocks’ – new transactions are added to the existing ‘chain’ of past transactions, hence the name ‘blockchain’. It is impossible to delete or modify information on the chain due to the replication of blocks across various locations.

Blockchain is mostly associated with cryptocurrency Bitcoin. Due to the inability to tamper with transactions, advocates say this makes the currency more secure and safer than traditional systems. It is maintained by a network of people referred to as ‘miners’, who receive rewards for solving complex mathematical equations that enable transactions to go through.

However, one of the major problems that has come to light has been the presence of illicit material buried in the Bitcoin blockchain, linking it to the dark web.

Other blockchain platforms can offer things like smart contracts, which are automatically implemented when specific conditions from all interested parties are reached, cutting the time involved and the risk of mistakes. Another use could be storing medical records, as patients can be confident their information cannot be changed. The technology can also be used in supply chains, voting and has the potential to used for storing property records.

Most sought after workplace benefits in the UAE

Flexible work arrangements
Pension support
Mental well-being assistance
Insurance coverage for optical, dental, alternative medicine, cancer screening
Financial well-being incentives