By Enkayaar, Bollywood Trade News Network

A new chapter was added by the GIFA Awards 2006 in the award category when it gave the awards in the category most searched actors and actresses, the awards being given to Shahrukh Khan as the actor and Priyanka Chopra in the actress category.

This phenomenon of giving the award in this category is a victory for the geeks and the nerds who cannot survive without their laptops, more so because they have forced the industry to start warming up to the technology and its practitioners. The first award of this kind being conferred on Shah Rukh Khan is an apt tribute to the passion that Shah Rukh Khan also has for the technology, as he is a self-declared technology buff, so is Priyanka Chopra as well, but to a lesser extent.

Technology had to have its role in the award category and with the Indian season of awards and ceremonies just round the country, and the kind of passion that it generates on account of actors being ignored by one variety of awards and being lapped by other variety of awards, for the award givers it is also a god send opportunity to introduce this category into their roll call from this year.

This category of awards would also be a shot in the arm for the web portals as they can also become the participating agents in the process of selection and this could turn out to be a good synergetic exercise between the publishing industry and the electronic industry. Webs sites and portals have the search option, which however presently takes them to the stories that have been published on the web site, and this new window when added to the web site would also increase the hits to the web sites.

Technological changes after all have started making there present felt in the industry exemplified from the fact that a film like VIVAH from Rajshri films has been offered as a free down load on the web. And with geeks on their own offering the movies in parts as downloads in an illegal manner, the industry needs to wake up to this trend and cater to this category of audience who does not have the time or the inclination to visit the cinema hall, but is such a buff that he is ready to view the illegal downloads.

Old movies like AMAR AKBAR ANTHONY are available for downloads and the web sites of the film production companies are enjoying this medium as it has opened up another alternate source of income for the industry, one in the form of download charges and other as a banner advertisement during the down load from the industry. Besides, this trend also has the potential for synergisation between the telecom companies and the film production houses, and this could be one of the reasons why Anil Ambani owned Reliance Infocom has bought stake into Shringar films smelling the potential that this new medium has to offer.