Tannishtha, Nawazuddin win big

Mumbai Nawazuddin Siddiqui seems to be on a roll - he won the best actor award at the recently concluded 12th annual New York Indian Film Festival (NYIFF) for his performance in Mangesh Hadawale's "Dekh Indian Circus", while Tannishtha Chatterjee won the best actress award for the same movie.

But neither of them could be present to receive their awards in New York May 27. The five-day fest started May 23.

Said Tannishtha: "I was shooting in Mumbai. And Nawazuddin is in Cannes. In fact, he didn't even know he had won. The award came as complete surprise to both of us, since there were other major films and performances in competition."

The actress plays Nawazuddin's wife in "Dekh Indian Circus" that talks about a family, which lives in a village in Rajasthan, and its trials and tribulations while fulfilling its dream.

Things are looking up for Nawazuddin whose "Gangs Of Wasseypur" and "Miss Lovely" featured in the competitive sections at the recently concluded 65th Cannes International Film Festival.

And then "Gangs Of Wasseypur", directed by Anurag Kashyap, was the closing film at the NYIFF and was expected to sweep all the awards.

"The good thing is, the international recognition means there would be more interest for the film at home. Our producers are now locking in a deal with a large corporate house. We'll release 'Dekh Indian Circus ' in August," said Tannistha.