SOURCE ; NEW18
Last Updated:January 17, 2025, 22:55 IST
The event recognises outstanding achievements across six diverse categories: Entertainment, Business, Sports, Youth Icon, Social Change, and Climate Warrior
Regarded as India’s biggest and most credible news television awards, IOTY celebrates the exceptional achievements of Indians who are inspiring the world through their triumphs. Images/News18
The 14th edition of India’s most prestigious television awards, CNN-News18 Indian of the Year (IOTY) 2024, unveiled its winners at a grand ceremony in New Delhi on Friday.
First introduced in 2006, the award has earned a reputation as a significant event in news television, honouring excellence displayed by the nation’s best in their respective fields. Previous winners include Shah Rukh Khan, Virat Kohli, AR Rahman, and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), to name a few. The event recognises outstanding achievements across six diverse categories: Entertainment, Business, Sports, Youth Icon, Social Change, and Climate Warrior.
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Sportsperson Of The Year
India pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah was awarded Sportsperson of The Year, with India’s Olympic medallists Manu Bhaker, Swapnil Kusale, PR Sreejesh, and cricketer Smriti Mandhana among other nominees.
Bumrah was also recently named ICC Men’s Player of the Month for December 2024 after his sensational performance during the recent tour of Australia for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
Leading India’s attack single-handedly, Bumrah relentlessly kept Australian batsmen under intense pressure, claiming 22 wickets in three Tests in December last year at an outstanding average of 14.22. He ended with 32 wickets in the five-match series, which concluded on January 5.
Spirit Of Empowerment
Women in Cinema Collective (WCC) was honoured with the Spirit Of Empowerment award. The advocacy group working for women in the Malayalam cinema industry was recognised and celebrated at the prestigious award ceremony. WCC members and actors Padmapriya Janakiraman and Rima Kallingal received the award.
In her speech, Rima Kallingal said, “It takes a lot to bring the world to a halt these days. We are all so busy, life easily becomes a blur. But every so often, someone, something comes along and interrupts the hectic cycle. From the Women’s Suffrage movement in the US in the 1800s and feminism’s second wave in the 1970s to the Women In Cinema Collective in 2017 and the MeToo Movement, the words and actions of women have transformed opinions, broken boundaries and kept choosing to challenge.”
Actor Padmapriya added, “It is a great pleasure for us at the WCC to receive this award today. WCC is Kerala’s quest for gender equality with centuries of communism, education, migration and trade relations and unions couldn’t give. To us, who continue to pioneer gender equality in cinema, this award means the recognition of 8 years of unwavering commitment to doing something and achieving something amongst innumerable obstacles including losing our jobs.”
Entertainer Of The Year (Popular Choice)
Actor Vijay Sethupathi was honoured as the Entertainer of The Year (Popular Choice). This recognition celebrates his outstanding talent and significant influence on the entertainment industry. Director Ramesh Sippy presented the prestigious award to the Maharaja star.
Vijay Sethupathi had a spectacular 2024, and he delivered a smashing hit with the action-thriller film Maharaja which became the highest opening weekend of Tamil cinema in 2024. The film, which also features Anurag Kashyap, Mamta Mohandas, Natty Subramaniam, Abhirami Gopikumar, and others, released in June 2024 and set several box-office records, emerging as the fourth-highest-grossing Tamil film of 2024.
Champion Award
Kartik Aaryan was honoured with the Champion award for his exceptional impact and accomplishments in the entertainment industry, recognising a year that pushed the boundaries of his career with Kabir Khan’s Chandu Champion.
In his speech, the actor said, “I am actually so happy to receive this honour and coincidentally it’s the day when Mr Murlikant Petkar got the Lifetime Arjuna Award at Rashtrapati Bhawan so it’s unbelievable the kind of magical moments this character, this film has given to all of us associated with the film. Our film started with the dialogue that ‘Mujhe Arjuna Award Chahiye’ and today he got the Lifetime Arjuna Award so his life has come full circle.”
Fan Favourite
Shraddha Kapoor was honoured with the Fan Favourite Award. In her acceptance speech, the actress said that she feels there is “no greater award” than this and that the support of her fans and well-wishers has been truly special.
Shraddha was at the top of her game in 2024, and she hit it out of the park with the huge success of her last release Stree 2. The actress starred in the film along with Rajkummar Rao, Pankaj Tripathi, Abhishek Banerjee and Aparshakti Khurana. The film broke records and surpassed the collections of blockbusters such as Pathaan and Jawan. The film, directed by Amar Kaushik, was released theatrically on 15th August 2024 and emerged as the highest-grossing Hindi film of 2024, as well as the 6th highest-grossing Hindi film, and 11th highest-grossing Indian film of all time.
Entertainer Of The Year (Jury)
Kiran Rao’s Laapataa Ladies earned the prestigious Entertainer of The Year (Jury) award, cementing its status as a critically acclaimed masterpiece.
Kiran Rao, accompanied by the cast, took to the stage to discuss the film’s unique casting process. Reflecting on the challenges of casting during the Covid-19 pandemic, she remarked, “It was one of those times when you had the pleasure of sitting in your house and watching hours of tapes from talented people across the country. I had the great fortune of working with an excellent casting director for Romil. Phool and Deepu were among the first to audition and were my top choices from the beginning. Jaya was ‘Laapataa’ from my life for a long time and was one of the last talents we found. When I saw her, I knew we had our Jaya.”
Youth Icon
Actor Vicky Kaushal was named Youth Icon of The Year. While accepting the award from veteran filmmaker Ramesh Sippy, Vicky said, “I’m so happy to be here. Thank you, CNN-News18, for this wonderful honour. As actors, we usually get to attend film awards, and on a very good day we end up winning the best actor award, and it feels amazing, but to be holding the award for Youth Icon Indian of the Year is truly a very special feeling.”
Business Award
Dr Sangita Reddy, Joint Managing Director (JMD) of Apollo Hospitals, was declared the CNN-News18 Indian of the Year 2024 in the Business category.
“This award is an acknowledgement of the healthcare in India. My father, Dr Reddy, who had returned from the US in 1980, lost a young patient. He had then asked, ‘Why can’t we give this standard of healthcare in India?’. He raised capital…Those were venture capitalists in those years. From that time when he dreamt of giving world-class facilities, to this is testament to the fact that dreams come true if you think of giving back to society,” said Reddy.
Social Change
Social entrepreneur and philanthropist Adhik Kadam of Borderless World Foundation won the award in the Social Change category. The man from Maharashtra has cared for and provided for girls caught in the conflict zones of Jammu and Kashmir.
Kadam’s award was accepted by his wife and family friend, while he gave his thanks via a Zoom call.
Elaborating on his journey, which started at the age of 18, he said he first visited J&K for research and saw the situation of children caught in the conflict. “I felt it was the women and children who were most affected and so I decided to help them. Girls are the future of this country and so we have to protect the girl child. They are future mothers and by empowering girls and women, we can bring about change. Women are the peace messengers in all communities,” he said.
Climate Warrior
Climate change activist Hina Saifi won the CNN-News18 Indian of The Year 2024 in the Climate Warrior category. Hailing from a backward village in Uttar Pradesh, she was part of the We The Change campaign launched by the United Nations in 2021.
Beginning her acceptance speech with Urdu shayari, she first thanked her parents for educating her despite belonging to a place where there is no school education beyond class VIII.
Asked what inspires her to raise awareness on climate change and environmental issues, she said her surroundings as well as the lack of education and awareness are what drive her.
“…I am also a changemaker and that’s important for me. I come from a background where women aren’t allowed out of their homes, so I thank my parents who gave me that chance. Those living in rural areas don’t believe in education or climate change, so I consciously thought of taking the first step towards climate activism. If we take the first step, then people follow you,” she said.
About The Awards
Regarded as India’s biggest and most credible news television awards, IOTY celebrates the exceptional achievements of Indians who are inspiring the world through their triumphs.
The jury for this edition was environmental activist Afroze Shah, former Solicitor General of India Harish Salve, and former Supreme Court judge Indu Malhotra.
The selection process was a mix of both jury and public voting, with 50% of the decision-making power given to the audience and the remaining 50% entrusted to the jury, striking a balance between the collective choice of the masses and the discerning eye of experts.
RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group was the Presenting Partner and Reliance Industries the Associate Partner for this edition of CNN-News18 Indian of the Year.
