Tagore most-admired, Aamir most-adored in China: Vivian Qu

Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore is the "most-admired" Indian in China while Bollywood star Aamir Khan is "most-adored" by the Chinese youth, film director Vivian Qu said here today.

Qu, whose film "Angels Wear White" won the Best Director award at last year's 48th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) at Goa was presented the award by Indian Ambassador to China, Gautam Bambawale, at a special function at the embassy.

"Aamir Khan is the most-adored Indian by the Chinese youth. Most-admired Indian is Tagore. We voraciously read his poems and can imagine how pleasant it is to hear those verses in Bengali," Qu told the gathering after receiving the award.

"I understood the significance of art and its legacy. Art can span time, cut across countries and even go beyond life and death," she said.

Reading out one of Tagore's celebrated poems, "Who are you reader", Qu said the poem touched her deeply and "the reasons why I have remembered for years is at that moment I understood the significance of the art and its legacy".

"Art can span time, cut across countries and even go beyond life and death," she said.

She also paid rich tributes to renowned filmmaker Satyajit Ray, saying that his iconic films such as "Pather Panchali" and "The Apu Trilogy" moved her. Ray's films showed that the power of art and its ability to "connect us all", she said.

Qu said her film "Angels Wear White" is based on myriad problems that exist in reality.

"The film does not try to answer questions but rather tries to raise questions about how a woman's body and woman's worth ought to be viewed in the 21st century," she said.

"This is a global issue which may sound outdated but it is of relevance to each one us today," she added.

The film also won the best actress award at the Belgrade Film Festival. The lead actor, Peng Jing, was present at the ceremony.

Presenting the award, Bambawale highlighted the film diplomacy between the two countries while referring to massive success of Aamir Khan's films "Dangal" and "Secret Superstar" at the Chinese box office.

Bambawale said people of India and China have fascination for movies. Both countries have huge talents in film directing and acting, the Indian envoy said.

"We, at the Indian Embassy, are delighted to note that Bollywood films are increasingly appreciated by audiences in China," he added.