Category: Awards

FICCI Business Delegation to join FICCI-IIFA Global Business Forum 2016

NEW DELHI: Coinciding with completion of 60 years of diplomatic relations between India and Spain, the tenth edition of Global Business Forum is being held later this week in Madrid by FICCI in partnership with International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) and Spain Chamber of Commerce(SCC).

FICCI President Harshavardhan Neotia is leading a 30-member delegation to the mneet on 24 June 2016.

Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) Additional Secretary & Financial Advisor Subhash Chandra Pandey would represent the Government for promoting regional linkages between India and Spain,.

A large number of Spanish senior officials and industry leaders would also be present and share their perspective on further promoting trade and investment relations between the two countries.

With a view to highlight the sectoral complementarity and business possibilities between the two countries, the forum shall have prominent industry and sectoral leaders to share their perspective during parallel sessions focusing on renewable energy, media and entertainment & promoting cooperation in film making, infrastructure with a special emphasis on urban transport and highways, tourism and smart cities.

A Working Paper on “India-Spain: Synergising Economic complementarity” would also be released apart from FICCI signing a partnership agreement with SCC at the Forum.

Before the commencement of the Global Business Forum, a tripartite agreement between FICCI, Spain Chamber of Commerce and CEOE would be signed to operationalize the Forum in presence of Mr Tulsi Tanti, Chairperson of the India Spain CEOs Forum & Chairman of Suzlon Energy Limited and Mr. Fernando Abril-Martorell, Chairman, Indra Sistemas and Spanish Co-Chair of CEOs Forum on 24 June 2016 morning. FICCI has been assigned by DIPP to extend secretariat support to the recently constituted India-Spain CEOs Forum.

Potential areas of interest for Spanish companies in India are infrastructure (roads, airports, ports, railways), energy (renewable and non-renewable), technology in agriculture, food processing, water desalination/purification, city waste management and tourism there is a huge potential for cooperation from Spain to India. Similarly, for the Indian companies, there is a huge potential for cooperation in the areas of pharmaceuticals (generic medicines) and IT.

June 23, 2016
Revel In The Magical Moments With ‘GiMA Rewind’ This Sunday!

MUMBAI: India’s biggest celebration of music, The Global Indian Music Academy (GiMA) has been an annual celebration of music in India for a number of years. With The 6th Gionee Colors Gima Awards Co Powered By Hungama & Renault to be broadcast on 5th June, the Academy will air a one hour special titled GiMA Rewind that puts together the most dazzling moments from the GiMA Awards from 11 am to 12 noon on Colors this Sunday, 29th May

Aptly titled ‘GiMA Rewind’, this segment will take you through the most illustrious moments from GiMA, from talented Indian musicians performing on stage to the star-studded acts each year. This 1-hour long episode will feature the King of Playback, Arijit Singh serenading the audience with his soul- stirring performance at GiMA 2015 as well as Ranveer Singh’s rap in GiMA 2014 which he dedicated to the music industry. The Year 2012 saw a number of acts with Bollywood actress Sonakshi Sinha’shigh energy act on her hit songs like ‘Go Go Govinda’, ‘Chinta Ta’ with a surprise guest Mika Singh at the GiMA stage. Adding to the night, her co-star and Bollywood superstar Ajay Devgan also joined her on-stage to groove on the title track of ‘Son of Sardar’. This performance will certainly be remembered and it is no surprise that fans will get to relive the energy once more through GiMA Rewind. The

GiMA 2012 had hit a crescendo with the heartfelt tribute to living musical maestro AR Rahman for completing 20 years in the industry. Leading musicians Hariharan & Sadhna Sargam, Udit Narayana, Alka Yagnik, Mohit Chouhan and Sonu Nigamjoined together as they presented their renditions of some of his hit songs like ‘Dil Hai Chota Sa’, ‘Chanda Re’, ‘Mitwa’ and ‘Sadda Haq’ to name a few . The musical experience created by renowned Composer Pritam alongside his band at GiMA 2015 can be revived once again with the Rewind special.

Last year also featured a special act by Sonu Nigam, Suresh Wadkar and Shankar Mahadevan, amongst others to pay a special tribute to Indian composer Anandji Virji Shah who received the Lifetime Achievement Award – Popular. Fans can truly rejoice as all these special moment have been made a part of this epic segment!

GiMA has given the Indian music industry a platform to celebrate and honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in Indian music across various genres. So make sure you watch this unique segment presenting the very best of GiMA Rewind on Sunday, 29th May from 11am to 12 noon, only on Colors!

May 28, 2016
Revel In The Magical Moments With ‘GiMA Rewind’ This Sunday!

MUMBAI: India’s biggest celebration of music, The Global Indian Music Academy (GiMA) has been an annual celebration of music in India for a number of years. With The 6th Gionee Colors Gima Awards Co Powered By Hungama & Renault to be broadcast on 5th June, the Academy will air a one hour special titled GiMA Rewind that puts together the most dazzling moments from the GiMA Awards from 11 am to 12 noon on Colors this Sunday, 29th May

Aptly titled ‘GiMA Rewind’, this segment will take you through the most illustrious moments from GiMA, from talented Indian musicians performing on stage to the star-studded acts each year. This 1-hour long episode will feature the King of Playback, Arijit Singh serenading the audience with his soul- stirring performance at GiMA 2015 as well as Ranveer Singh’s rap in GiMA 2014 which he dedicated to the music industry. The Year 2012 saw a number of acts with Bollywood actress Sonakshi Sinha’shigh energy act on her hit songs like ‘Go Go Govinda’, ‘Chinta Ta’ with a surprise guest Mika Singh at the GiMA stage. Adding to the night, her co-star and Bollywood superstar Ajay Devgan also joined her on-stage to groove on the title track of ‘Son of Sardar’. This performance will certainly be remembered and it is no surprise that fans will get to relive the energy once more through GiMA Rewind. The

GiMA 2012 had hit a crescendo with the heartfelt tribute to living musical maestro AR Rahman for completing 20 years in the industry. Leading musicians Hariharan & Sadhna Sargam, Udit Narayana, Alka Yagnik, Mohit Chouhan and Sonu Nigamjoined together as they presented their renditions of some of his hit songs like ‘Dil Hai Chota Sa’, ‘Chanda Re’, ‘Mitwa’ and ‘Sadda Haq’ to name a few . The musical experience created by renowned Composer Pritam alongside his band at GiMA 2015 can be revived once again with the Rewind special.

Last year also featured a special act by Sonu Nigam, Suresh Wadkar and Shankar Mahadevan, amongst others to pay a special tribute to Indian composer Anandji Virji Shah who received the Lifetime Achievement Award – Popular. Fans can truly rejoice as all these special moment have been made a part of this epic segment!

GiMA has given the Indian music industry a platform to celebrate and honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in Indian music across various genres. So make sure you watch this unique segment presenting the very best of GiMA Rewind on Sunday, 29th May from 11am to 12 noon, only on Colors!

May 28, 2016
Frost & Sullivan to host 14th India ICT Awards

MUMBAI: Frost & Sullivan will host the 2016 edition of its India ICT Awards on 2 June 2016 at Hyatt Regency, Mumbai. In its 14 consecutive year, the prestigious awards banquet will be a display of the stellar achievements of the country’s ICT firms, leveraging innovative technologies and digital initiatives.

Frost & Sullivan’s Annual India ICT Awards is a platform focused on driving innovation, ushering in a positive change in the industry, thus differentiating it from other awards programs. The awards will acknowledge a company’s exceptional growth, strategies and products, dedicated customer focus, etc. to inspire new opportunities for technological evolution.

The award nominations have been subjected to rigorous assessment methodology backed by detailed study of the nominated companies, based on actual market parameters and performance indicators. Additionally, a jury panel represented by eminent thought leaders and industry experts collectively asses the results of these studies to select the nominee, ensuring that the recipients of the awards are best-in-class.

Frost & Sullivan Middle East, North Africa & South Asia director digital transformation practice Benoy C.S said, “Digital Transformation is rapidly disrupting all industries, while providing opportunities as well as challenges to the ICT sector. This calls for all ICT companies to continuously demonstrate best practices and also keep innovating to differentiate themselves in this highly competitive market. The objective of Frost & Sullivan awards is to recognize those companies who demonstrated innovation, commitment, and successful business strategies that are required for being a leader in the marketplace. Every award is backed by solid research by Frost & Sullivan’s team of analysts and is probably the only award of its kind where analysts, industry thought leaders, and top technology decision makers come together to identify the most deserving company in each category. We are happy to see this change and recognize the deserving companies.”

The awards program encompasses four main categories – Enterprise Infrastructure, Emerging Software Products and IT Services, Enterprise Telecom Services, and Mobile and Wireless. The award includes some of the most coveted titles in ICT industry with 30 awards being presented this year. These awards, besides promoting industry recognition, reinforces investor and client relationships, enhancing brand and product visibility.

The awards program, being an invitation-only event, will give companies access to the crème-de-la-crème of the industry – senior leaders and key decision makers, besides unique branding opportunities. Sponsors supporting the event will also get access to Frost & Sullivan’s cutting-edge industry insights and revel in our acknowledgement of their efforts and achievements. To know more about sponsorship opportunities, please contact Amit Kumar at amitk@frost.com.

The 2016 India ICT Awards is supported by the following Media Partners – Channel Times, Communications Today, CXO Today, Tele.net, and Telecom Watch. To know more about this prestigious awards banquet, please visit www.frost.com/ictawards, and follow our official Twitter hashtag: #fsictawardsindia.

May 6, 2016
Frost & Sullivan to host 14th India ICT Awards

MUMBAI: Frost & Sullivan will host the 2016 edition of its India ICT Awards on 2 June 2016 at Hyatt Regency, Mumbai. In its 14 consecutive year, the prestigious awards banquet will be a display of the stellar achievements of the country’s ICT firms, leveraging innovative technologies and digital initiatives.

Frost & Sullivan’s Annual India ICT Awards is a platform focused on driving innovation, ushering in a positive change in the industry, thus differentiating it from other awards programs. The awards will acknowledge a company’s exceptional growth, strategies and products, dedicated customer focus, etc. to inspire new opportunities for technological evolution.

The award nominations have been subjected to rigorous assessment methodology backed by detailed study of the nominated companies, based on actual market parameters and performance indicators. Additionally, a jury panel represented by eminent thought leaders and industry experts collectively asses the results of these studies to select the nominee, ensuring that the recipients of the awards are best-in-class.

Frost & Sullivan Middle East, North Africa & South Asia director digital transformation practice Benoy C.S said, “Digital Transformation is rapidly disrupting all industries, while providing opportunities as well as challenges to the ICT sector. This calls for all ICT companies to continuously demonstrate best practices and also keep innovating to differentiate themselves in this highly competitive market. The objective of Frost & Sullivan awards is to recognize those companies who demonstrated innovation, commitment, and successful business strategies that are required for being a leader in the marketplace. Every award is backed by solid research by Frost & Sullivan’s team of analysts and is probably the only award of its kind where analysts, industry thought leaders, and top technology decision makers come together to identify the most deserving company in each category. We are happy to see this change and recognize the deserving companies.”

The awards program encompasses four main categories – Enterprise Infrastructure, Emerging Software Products and IT Services, Enterprise Telecom Services, and Mobile and Wireless. The award includes some of the most coveted titles in ICT industry with 30 awards being presented this year. These awards, besides promoting industry recognition, reinforces investor and client relationships, enhancing brand and product visibility.

The awards program, being an invitation-only event, will give companies access to the crème-de-la-crème of the industry – senior leaders and key decision makers, besides unique branding opportunities. Sponsors supporting the event will also get access to Frost & Sullivan’s cutting-edge industry insights and revel in our acknowledgement of their efforts and achievements. To know more about sponsorship opportunities, please contact Amit Kumar at amitk@frost.com.

The 2016 India ICT Awards is supported by the following Media Partners – Channel Times, Communications Today, CXO Today, Tele.net, and Telecom Watch. To know more about this prestigious awards banquet, please visit www.frost.com/ictawards, and follow our official Twitter hashtag: #fsictawardsindia.

May 6, 2016
The Film and Television Producers Guild of India to host Guild TV Awards

MUMBAI: The Film and Television Producers Guild of India has announced the first edition of the Guild Television Awards to honor the best in the entertainment industry. The ceremony will be conducted on 16 December 2015 and will be aired on Sony Entertainment Television. The award ceremony will recognize extraordinary brilliance and the legacy of television in our country. The event will also commemorate extraordinary achievements in Indian cinema and television fraternity and will honor the best contributions and accomplishments in the industry.

Speaking on the announcement, the President of the Film and Television Producers Guild of India Mukesh Bhatt asserted, “The Television Industry has been growing at an exciting pace. With multiple TV channels and genres developing across the spectrum, it is time to celebrate the success. Over the years, we have honored deserving talent from both film and television industries and this time we have taken a step ahead to specially create a dedicated platform and event to celebrate the success of the television industry. Our TV landscape is rich and boasts of path-breaking series and production of global standards. We are very excited and look forward to the ceremony that will celebrate the best performances in the past year.”

The joint event between The Guild and event management agency, Wizcraft will be seen working with the leading broadcast networks and the leading producers to celebrate producers, channels, actors, directors and writers on one star-studded stage.

“India is home to an illustrious and prolific television industry which presents a plethora of fresh concepts and larger-than-life productions year on year spanning mythology, historical, family dramas, thrillers, comedy, reality and much more. It gives us immense pleasure to host an exclusive ceremony for the members of the Indian television fraternity and look forward to creating the biggest night Indian television is yet to witness”, adds Wizcraft International Entertainment director Sabbas Joseph.

The winners of the Awards will be chosen by the Guild’s panel of 160 members which constitutes some of the most powerful and influential luminaries in the film and television sector.

November 26, 2015
Three Indian entries win for best TV production at Apollo Awards

NEW DELHI: Indians won three awards out of the eight entries shortlisted for the Apollo Awards for television programming in Asia to be presented in Singapore.

There were a total of 15 categories for the awards.

The awards are to be presented on 18 June in conjunction with BroadcastAsia 2014 – the 19th International Digital Multimedia & Entertainment Technology Exhibition and Conference, at Marina Bay Sands, Singapore.

While Studio Eeksaurus Production Pvt Ltd, India won two awards for Art Direction (Sandeep Shelhar & Ashok – Kitkat Astronaut- Diwali) and 2D Animation (Arun Rane & Sunita Kathiwada – Rotary Fateline), the third prize went to Prime Focus in Visual Effects/CGI – Long Form (Stefen Fangmeier & Merzin Tavaria – Sin City: A Dame to Kill For).

Launched in 2005, the Apollo Awards is an initiative aimed at honouring the best in production and post-production across Asia Pacific, with a strong focus on the creative and technical mastery behind the scenes.

The 23-member jury included one Indian – Studio Eeksaurus founder and creative director Suresh Eriyat.

The Apollo awards had been introduced to recognize the fluid nature of talent migration in the production and post-production industry, coupled with the growth of Asia Pacific’s media and entertainment industry, has drawn top talent to the region and elevated the quality of work produced in this region.

Since the launch of its new and improved version in 2013, the Apollo Awards has garnered attention from industry players as the nature of the awards is uncommon in this region.

June 5, 2015
CNN-IBN Indian of the Year returns with its 9th edition

MUMBAI: English news channel CNN-IBN is back with the ninth edition of CNN-IBN Indian of the Year. The award salutes iconic Indians who have made a significant contribution to India in the last calendar year. Hindustan Times has been the editorial partner of this initiative since its inception in 2006.

The year 2014 has been a momentous year in the history of India and has given rise to a set of role models who have been true ambassadors of brand India. The luminaries who have contributed to strengthening the foundation of the society in their own way are chosen from six different categories – politics, sports, entertainment, business, public service and global Indian. The winners of these will be felicitated at a glittering ceremony to be held at Taj Palace, New Delhi on 17 March, 2015 by the vice president of India Mohammad Hamid Ansari.

The selection criteria adheres to a unique and transparent process, which includes nominations from the Network18 editorial board, ratified by a jury panel consisting of a select group of distinguished personalities bestowed with the most prestigious Padma honours – former Attorney General of India Padma Vibhushan Soli Sorabjee (jury chairman), Padma Bhushan Deepak S Parekh (chairman, HDFC), Padma Shri & four-time National Award winner actor Mohanlal Viswanathan Nair, former president of NASSCOM Padma Kiran Karnik and Indian tennis champion Padma Leander Paes.

Over the years, the recipients of this award have included the NGO Stop Acid Attacks (2013), Indian chess grandmaster Viswanathan Anand (2012), Anna Hazare (2011), Bihar CM Nitish Kumar (2010), A R Rahman (2009), G Madhavan Nair (2008), E Sreedharan (2007) and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh (2006).

Speaking on the occasion IBN Network CEO Avinash Kaul said, “We take immense pride in announcing the ninth edition of CNN-IBN Indian of the Year Awards. We have created a benchmark in lauding the most influential, deserving and dynamic Indians, over the years. The success of the award in the past has raised the bar for this initiative and we are looking forward to a great show this year again.”

CNN-IBN managing editor Radhakrishnan Nair added, “Indian of the Year is our endeavour to acknowledge achievers, who have been exceptional in their respective fields in the last calendar year. We at CNN-IBN are privileged to bring them to the fore as an inspiration to others and honour them with these awards.”

March 12, 2015
TV Academy makes major changes to Emmy Awards rules

MUMBAI: The Television Academy has passed a group of new Primetime Emmy Awards rules, which reflect the increasingly varied and expanding television landscape.

Television Academy Chairman Bruce Rosenblum said, “We are thrilled to announce that our Board of Governors and senior industry executives have taken meaningful time to address, in a forward thinking manner, many of our existing rules and procedures. Our over 17,000 voting members represents a dramatically changing television industry and we want to continue to make sure we honor their creativity in the most relevant and fair ways possible. As our growing membership creates and produces more content for ever-changing platforms, today’s changes in the rules and procedures are vital. We’re sure that in coming years we will continue to evolve our rules as our dynamic industry grows.”

The changes include:

Expansion of Final Round Voting: In an effort to increase member participation in the voting process, and to take advantage of the Academy’s extension of online voting to both rounds, all voters eligible to vote in a category’s nominating round are now eligible to vote in that category’s final round, so long as they meet two additional requirements: much like the former Blue Ribbon panel process, voters must watch the required submitted material online and attest to no specific conflicts of interest with the nominees.

Expansion of Nominees for “Comedy” and “Drama” Series Categories: Due to the dramatic increase in series production, the number of nominees for “Comedy” and “Drama” series has been increased from six to seven.

Definition of a “Comedy” and “Drama” Series: To clarify the difference between the “Comedy” and “Drama” series categories, series with episodes of 30 minutes or less are defined as a “Comedy”; those with episodes of more than 30 minutes are presumed to be a “Drama.”

Producers may formally petition a new Academy industry panel to consider their series’ eligibility in the alternative category. This nine-member panel will include five industry leaders appointed by the Television Academy Chairman and four appointees from the Board of Governors. A two-thirds vote of this Industry Panel is required for petition approval.

All programs entering the competition this year will be grouped according to these new definitions.

Definition of “Series” and “Limited Series”: “Mini-Series” will be changed to “Limited Series” and defined as programs of two or more episodes with a total running time of at least 150 program minutes that tell a complete, non-recurring story, and do not have an ongoing storyline and/or main characters in subsequent seasons. “Comedy” and “Drama” Series will continue to be defined as programs with a minimum of six episodes which have an ongoing storyline, theme and main characters presented under the same title and with continuity of production supervision.

Producers may formally petition for review by the aforementioned industry panel to change category eligibility.

Definition of “Guest Actor”: Only performers appearing in less than 50% of a program’s episodes are now eligible to submit in the “Guest Actor” category.

Split of Variety Series category: The Variety Series category is now split – Outstanding Variety Talk, to be awarded during the Primetime Emmy telecast, and Outstanding Variety Sketch, to be included in the Creative Arts Emmy program.

February 21, 2015
IIFA Amsterdam set to rock; ‘Parineeta’ to add lustre

MUMBAI: The Samsung IIFA Awards Amsterdam to be held on 11 June will see performances by the popular stars of Indian cinema including Salman Khan, Abhishek Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai, Kareena Kapoor and Suneil Shetty.

Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s Parineeta will be premiered as the IIFA World Premiere in Amsterdam on 9 June 2005.

The award extravaganza, one of the main highlights of the IIFA Weekend will be held in the presence of a global audience including dignitaries from the world of cinema like Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bachchan, Yash Chopra, A.R.Rahman, Javed Akhtar, Shabana Azmi, Vivek Oberoi, Kareena Kapoor, Kajol, Ajay Devgan, Urmila Matondkar to name a few. Other guests would include stalwarts from the world of business, politics and sports.

While Samsung has committed itself to sponsorship of the Samsung IIFA Awards for the third successful year, this year’s IIFA celebrations will be broadcast across the world by the Star TV network via satellite. Star TV viewers can experience the IIFA journey over multiple programmes that cover the various events and interactions in Amsterdam and the Best of IIFA over the past five years.

Much-admired film star Abhishek Bachchan will take the stage for his first-ever international performance at the spectacular Samsung IIFA Awards night at the magnificent Amsterdam ArenA. Over 10,000 people will witness a spectacular show by the best of the Indian Film Industry. The celebrated Shiamak Davar will choreograph these breath-taking performances, states an official release.

The IIFA Weekend and all IIFA events are conceptualized, produced and directed by Wizcraft International Entertainment, one of the world’s leading entertainment agencies. As always, this year too the Samsung IIFA Awards will be celebrating the Superstars of Indian Cinema and paying tribute to the stalwarts from the Indian silver screen.

For the first time, IIFA will host the FICCI-IIFA Global Business Forum at Expo XXI and an IIFA Film Festival. The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) have come together with IIFA to promote the globalisation of Indian Cinema across the globe. The Forum will be a place for shared synergies, ideation and new business opportunities between India and the Netherlands. Topics of discussion at the forum will be Cinema & entertainment, Civil Aviation, Commerce & Industry and Tourism. Speakers at the forum would be government officials, policy makers and industry stalwarts from both nations, the release adds.

In India msn.com and indya.com are the official websites for voting of the popular awards. Global Indian Cinema fans can vote for and help their favourite film stars to win an IIFA award this year. Lucky winners will be able to travel to Amsterdam and witness the Samsung IIFA Awards. The nominations for the Popular Awards are now open for public voting, using the globally accessible www.msn.com/iifa and www.indya.com platforms. The voting process is monitored and audited by PriceWaterhouseCoopers, who are also the audit firm for the Oscars.

December 9, 2014