Dozens of Bollywood stars heading to Israel

Some of the biggest names in Bollywood will be heading to Israel next month for an unprecedented event celebrating Indian culture and celebrity.Among the close to 80 actors, singers and dancers who will perform at the Rishon Lezion Live Park on October 9 are some huge stars including Akshay Kumar, Kareena Kapoor, Madhuri Dixit and Shilpa Shetty. These stars are all tabloid mainstays in India, with huge social media followings: Kumar has 28 million Twitter followers, while Shetty has 7 million Instagram followers and Dixit has 25 million fans on Facebook.The stars will be joined by dozens of Bollywood performers for an evening of song and dance. The performance will be preceded by an event selling traditional Indian food and drink, and featuring men and women in traditional Indian dress.“Israel is about to bear witness to a once-in-a-lifetime show,” said Oren Penker, the CEO of Bollywood Israel Productions, which is staging the event.“In all of Israel’s history there has never been a Bollywood show of this size including acting, music and dance. This show is a salute to Israel, and reflects the strong connection that exists between the cultures.”Over the past two years – in particular since Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Israel last year and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to India in January – the governments have been urging cooperation in the film industry. Earlier this year, Modi and Netanyahu signed a film cooperation agreement that would classify films produced under the deal as national productions, making them eligible for incentives. Last year, portions of the upcoming Bollywood film Drive were shot in Israel, believed to be the first Hindi film set in the Jewish state.Tickets for the “Bollywood 4 Ever” show are available from b-4ever.co.il and range from NIS 399-1,490.