New Delhi: This season, Indian Premier League (IPL) is returning back to normalcy after the gap of 4 years. Due to Covid-19 pandemic, matches were restricted, opening and closing ceremony halted. But in 16th edition of IPL the grand opening ceremony is back.

Opening ceremony starting time

The IPL 2023 Opening Ceremony will kickstart the new Indian Premier League season and is scheduled for 6:00 PM India Standard Time (IST), on Friday, at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

Drone show glimpses – tonight's gonna be fascinating! pic.twitter.com/d88GQC5kPA

— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) March 31, 2023

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Star-studded evening

Superstar playback singer Arijit Singh will be performing at the event and hoping to allure  the crowd at the world’s largest cricket stadium. More glamour will added by the Indian cinema divas like Rashmika Mandanna and Tamannaah Bhatia. Both the stars will also be performing in the ceremony.

The grand ceremony will also see a mid-innings drone show, which will have a choreographed dance of 1,500 drones decorating the sky above the stadium.

IPL 2023 opening ceremony will have this kind of drone show.

It's going to be a lovely evening tomorrow at Narendra Modi Stadium! pic.twitter.com/pfg03wrZbb

— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) March 30, 2023

What do Rashmika, Tamannaah say?

“So, I have always wanted to go and witness a match, but I never got the opportunity. But today, I am going to be performing in the opening ceremony. So I am like, made it,” Rashmika Mandanna said ahead of the opening ceremony.

“Generally when I watch a match, I get too anxious. I have my emotions up and down. So I try to just look at the results of it, she added.

The actress also revealed that her favourite two cricketers are MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli.

“Of course, Dhoni sir and Virat sir. All of our players who are at top-notch”, she further added.

While in conversation with the IPL media team on Twitter, Tamannaah Bhatia said, “Performing on stage is something I have enjoyed since I started my career. But I feel like everytime you perform on stage, it is very exhilarating and its almost like this nervous energy which is inevitable. But just performing for the IPL and in 2023 where there’s been so much, the pandemic, its been a hard two years for everyone and getting the opportunity to perform with Arijit, Rashmika is something I am really looking forward to.”

“Let me breath cricket. For us movie stars, cricket is so close to us. It’s kind of what we have been bought up with. So it’s something we really celebrate,” she said.

Just like Rashmika, Tamannaah also adore Indian superstars MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli.

“When I watch, I watch like I get very involved and very invested. Definitely Dhoni is everyone’s favorite and I am no different. And Virat. I think these two are my favourites”, she further added.

Lights 💡
Camera 📸
Action 🔜⏳@tamannaahspeaks & @iamRashmika are geared up for an exhilarating opening ceremony of #TATAIPL 2023 at the Narendra Modi Stadium 🏟️🎇 pic.twitter.com/wAiTBUqjG0

— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) March 30, 2023

Match to follow after ceremony

The grand event will be followed by the season opener match  between defending champions Gujarat Titans and Chennai Super Kings in the same venue.