It was nothing less than a 'dekko'. For those of you who have been mercilessly starved of Megastar Chiranjeevi's dance for so many years, CineMAA Awards 2016 comes as a big bonanza. At the event held yesterday in Hyderabad, a more than 30-minute tribute was paid to Chiru through an Audio-Visual, which had the Megastar speak in the styles of Mutha Mestri, Shankardada and Indra, among others.

The bugle was sounded by Rana Daggubati, who described Chiru as the insuperable. The AV was peppered with panegyrics on the Megastar, showered, among others, by Tanikella Bharani, Sai Dharam Tej, Srikanth, Sunil, Navdeep, and a bunch of children.

Teju, Sunil and others broke into dance, while the audience waited for the Megastar to make a thundering arrival. The audience waited enthusiastically for a good 30 minutes or so until Chiru appeared on the dais amid huge cheers from the spectators. From the time the matchless dancer arrived, he raised the roof - consistently and unmistakably.

When Chiru spoke, he was all gratitude toward one and all. The biggest bonanza came when Chiru danced. The audience swooned, naturally and involuntarily. The 'Gang Leader' spellbound everyone with his characteristic grace and style. As he danced to that timeless title song from 'Gang Leader', his stardom roared. As he smiled, vintage 'anna' drenched his die-hard fans in joy.

A seemingly emotional Chiru later confessed to feeling tensed before starting off with his dance. The ever-so-humble man proved once again that he is still the biggest one around - both as a star and as a person.

His long-time friends Rajendra Prasad (who gave a call to the audience for a standing ovation) and Nagarjuna (who later said that the tribute was well-deserved at a time when Chiru is doing his 150th film) later felicitated him and hugged him.

As they say, all awards nights are not the same. This one was 'Mega' entertainment.