After five long hours, the crowd at the Meydan Hotel burst into cheers as Bollywood actor Salman Khan performed at the Arab Indo Bollywood Awards Friday night.
Surrounded by several dozens of bodyguards and back-up dancers, Khan stepped on stage as the outdoor venue filled with screams, emotions and applause.
As almost 15,000 fans cheered him on, many stood on their chairs to support his performance - the first overseas since he was sentenced this month to five years’ jail for the hit-and-run death of a homeless man in Mumbai in 2002.
Khan is on bail pending the July appeal and had to obtain court permission to leave India.
From around 1am, he sang several of his most popular songs to the crowd’s delight.
“It was the best performance ever,” said Gorav Chand, a 40-year-old Indian national. “Salman Khan will always be the best, he always was and always will be.”
As the last song came to an end, the audience repeatedly chanted his name, asking for another song.
After thanking the crowd for their patience, he waved before slipping backstage.
“It was really good,” said Abeda Mussa, a 31-year-old Indian who has lived in Dubai for the past six months. “I didn’t expect it to be that good, it was really worth the wait. He’s a great actor and a good person.”
Indian nationals Pamela Mulani and her daughter Nitasha, who have been in Dubai for 20 years, said they knew Khan personally. “When you’ve lived in India, you know everyone and he’s an amazing person,” said Ms Mulani. “We’re very big fans of his and whatever happened to him also happened to many people so with all the charity work he does and how much he gives to poverty-stricken people, he didn’t need this kind of sentence.”
They said the fact that he was allowed to travel Dubai was a good move. “He has fans worldwide,” she said. “Not just in Dubai but there are a lot here.”
Davina Patel, 22, said she found it hard to control her excitement. “I’ve been waiting for him to come visit and I’m so happy that day is finally here,” she said. “A lot of people have bad things to say about him but he is a good person and we all love him here.”
Munn Munira, a 23-year-old Bangladeshi who was born and raised in Dubai, said she was one of his biggest fans. “I am very happy that he was allowed to travel to Dubai for the show,” she said. “Why shouldn’t he be allowed to travel? He is not in jail and I believe he took permission from the court to allow him to travel to Dubai. If a person had the intention of running away, they would never do that and he will also be submitting his passport back at the court once he is back in India.”
She said he was very popular in the UAE. “I’m sure there are a lot of people who do not like him as well,” she said. “But I don’t see why he shouldn’t be allowed to travel now, in the case that’s going on against him, the incident happened ten years ago and it’s the Indian government’s fault that it took so long to clear and it’s still not cleared.”
Ms Munira said he had evolved as a better person in many ways during the past ten years. “He is doing everything he can to help children and the needy and a lot of other good deeds which I believe is his way of repenting for the mistake he did,” she said. “People make mistakes and that’s how they learn. If we set that mentality that this person committed a crime ten years ago and think negative of him, ignoring all the good deeds he has done since, I think that’s just not fair.”
She said he had also helped other actors in their career. “Above all, he is a great person by his good deeds,” she added. “I don’t want to judge him based on his past because a person grows by learning from his mistake and we shouldn’t keep reminding him of his past mistakes when presently we can all see the great changes in him.”
Anita Chandock, a 38-year-old Indian from Abu Dhabi, said she became his fan when she witnessed all the charity work he had undertaken. “Anyone who sees the work he’s done can judge from themselves that he is a good person,” she said. “I was so excited when I heard he had been allowed to travel to Dubai. So many people here love him and it’s such an amazing thing that he made it to the show tonight.”
Mobin Agha, an Indian who has been living in Dubai for nine years, said Mr Khan was a good influence on the youth. “I love him,” he said. “He is a down to earth kind of person and his way of helping the needy has done good to many. He also started the trend of working out and being fit in Bollywood and many youngsters followed that trend. He has a huge popularity in Dubai and around the world.”
cmalek@thenational.ae
