Veer Zaara, a Romeoand Juliet story about a romance between an Indian pilot and his Pakistanisweetheart, triumphed on Sunday at the International Indian Film Academy (IIFA)awards ceremony held in Amsterdam.

Veer Zaara, which wonthe best film prize and earned Yash Chopra a best director's award, is a timelytale of cross-cultural love as India and Pakistan engage in a littlerelationship-warming themselves.

The awards ceremony attracted about 150 leading actors andactresses from "Bollywood" as well as some 300 producers and directors.It was broadcast to an estimated 400 million television viewers worldwide.

Since 2000, the International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) hasstaged the awards abroad to raise the international profile of its filmindustry. India is the world's biggest film producer at around 1,000 features ayear.

Veer Zaara, the twonames of the film's young lovers - took six awards in all, with leading manShahrukh Khan scooping the best actor award and Rani Mukherji picking up thesupporting actress prize.

Former Miss World Aishwarya Rai and Bollywood icon AmitabhBachchan, were among those taking part in the ceremony.

"Amsterdam is a gateway to Europe for Indiancinema," said Bachchan, who arrived on stage on a bicycle.

Some 200,0000 people of Hindu origin live in theNetherlands.