President meets Bollywood celebrities, requests shooting films in Maldives

President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu on Tuesday met with several Bollywood celebrities during an event held to promote the Maldives tourism brand and destination, where the Maldives head of state has invited the B-town celebrities to visit the island nation for their film shootings.

President met with the Indian celebrities during his ongoing official visit to India on the invitation of the country’s President Droupadi Murmu. The president was accompanied by the Minister of Tourism Ibrahim Faisal at the event.

Notable actors President Muizzu met at the event include Shilpa Shetty, Arbaz Khan, Shriya Saran, Sonakshi Sinha and Sunny Kaushal. Muizzu invited these celebrities to visit the Maldives for their next film shooting and utilize the scenic imageries of the Maldives in their movies to promote the island nation.

Popular acress Sonakshi Sinha, who is known for her frequent visits to the Maldives, while giving an interview during the meeting highlighted the Maldives is among her favorite holiday destinations, which the actress said is evident from her Instagram posts and reels.

Sinha said she enjoyed the beautiful weather and hospitality in the Maldives, which she said were the top highlights of the country and noted that she frequented the country due to her enthusiasm for diving.

While speaking at the event, the Rowdy Rathore actress said the Maldives was ‘Paradise on earth’ adding that travelers will not be disappointed after visiting the country.

President Muizzu, who flew to India on the official visit on Sunday will conclude his trip and fly back on Thursday.

During his visit, he has already met with the Indian President Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi and engaged in high-level talks. During Muizzu’s meeting with Modi, the two countries entered into a new USD 400 million and INR 30 billion currency swap agreement as well.

India has remained as the top source market for three consecutive years from 2020 to 2023, but slipped through the ranks earlier in 2024 owing to soured relations between the two countries. So far, the market has contributed a total arrival of 92,270 in annual terms and is ranked fifth among the top 10 source markets.