Bollywood steals show at IPL opening

It was a heady concoction of entertainment and glamour as some top Bollywood stars including Amitabh Bachchan and American pop star Katy Perry entralled the spectators during the glamorous opening ceremony of the fifth edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) at the YMCA Ground here on Tuesday.

Bachchan started the evening in his signature baritone with a poem written by ad-man turned lyricist Prasoon Joshi.

Making his first appearance after undergoing an abdominal surgery, the 69-year-old recite "Janam Yadhi Phir Se Mile" while dancers from the renowned Shiamak Davar troupe danced to the words of the poem.

Bachchan's performance was followed by Colonial Cousins, DJ Ravi Drums and Soth African percussionist group 1st Project, who left the spectators and the crickters in awe.

The legendary actor then led all the nine captains to sign the MCC Spirt of the Game pledge.

But what left a long lasting impression was performances by Priyanka Chopra, Kareena Kapoor and Salman Khan.

Priyanka mesemerised the crowd as she went up in the air during her performance, and also made cricketers Doug Bollinger and Harbhajan Singh dance a little jig with her.

'Pigy Chops' started her act dancing to the tune of "Aaj ki raat" and followed it up with another power-packed performance on "Dhantanaa" from the film "Kaminey".

Priyanka also made some of the players of the Chennai Super Kings, including Mahendra Singh Dhoni dance to the hit Tamil song "Nakka mukka".

Kareena then set the stage on fire dancing to the tune of "Chhamak chhallo" and "Dil mera muft ka", from her latest film Agent Vinod. But what drew a lot of applause was when she danced to "Pyaar ki pungi".

Local hero Prabhu Deva also performed some Michael Jackson moves and dished out some of his favourite moves from "Main aisa kyun hun" from "Lakshya" and "Tera hi jalwa".

During the ceremony, Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president N. Srinivasan promised to help 185 Indian cricketers with the proceeds from the four play-off stage matches.

"The proceeds from the play-off matches will be distributed among former cricketers, who have represented India at the international level and also among domestic players.

The BCCI will give a one time assistance to those cricketers and around 185 Indian cricketers will benefit. It is a small gesture from the BCCI to all those who have done yoeman's service to Indian cricket, " he said.

"It is a proud moment for me to stand here on this stage with nine captains. IPL has gone from strength to strength and has become one of the premier tournament of the world. We distribute proceeds from the IPL to all the state associations to build infrastructure. BCCI spends substantial amount on helping to develop the game at the grass roots, " he said.