CNN-News18, India’s leading English news channel, has unveiled the highly anticipated 2023 edition of the ‘CNN-News18 Indian of the Year’ awards, a prestigious recognition of India’s most influential personalities across various categories.

As per a press release, the ‘Indian of the Year’ awards are celebrated for their credibility and viewer’s choice status.

This year, the awards will honor outstanding individuals in nine categories, acknowledging their remarkable achievements and contributions to India’s progress.

The selection process combines expert judgment and public voting, with both holding equal weight, allowing the audience to play a pivotal role in the decision-making process.

The distinguished panel of jurors for this year’s awards includes renowned figures from diverse fields, such as Screenwriter and Lyricist Javed Akhtar, Former Solicitor General of India Harish Salve, Former Indian Athlete and Vice-President of Athletics Federation of India Anju Bobby George, Chairperson of RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group Sanjiv Goenka, and Environmental Activist and Lawyer Afroz Shah.

The nominees for the ‘Indian of the Year 2023’ title across various categories are as follows:

Sports:
Neeraj Chopra (Indian Track and Field Athlete)
Nikhat Zareen (Indian Professional Boxer)
Satwiksairaj Rankireddy & Chirag Shetty (Indian Badminton Players)
Shubman Gill (Indian Cricketer)
Sunil Chhetri (Captain, Indian Football Team)

Rising Sports Personality:
Antim Panghal (Indian Professional Wrestler)
Jyoti Yarraji (Indian Athlete)
R Praggnanandhaa (Indian Chess Grandmaster)
Shafali Verma (Indian Cricketer)
Yashasvi Jaiswal (Indian Cricketer)

Business:
Dinesh Kumar Khara (Chairperson of State Bank of India)
Natarajan Chandrasekaran (Chairperson of Tata Sons)
Sandeep Bakhshi (CEO of ICICI Bank)
Sanjiv Puri (Managing Director of ITC)
Sunil Vachani (Founder & Chairman Dixon Technologies)

Entertainment:
Deepika Padukone (Indian Actress)
Mani Ratnam (Indian Film Director)
Manoj Bajpayee (Indian Actor)
Shah Rukh Khan (Indian actor and film producer)
Sunny Deol (Indian Actor)

Climate Warrior:
Arun Krishnamurthy (Indian Environmental Activist)
Atul Sati (Convenor of Joshimath Bachao Sangharsh Samiti)
Dinesh Kumar Mishra (Convenor of Barh Mukti Abhiyan)
Ridhima Pandey (Indian Environmental Activist)
Saalumarada Thimmakka (Indian Environmentalist)
Social Change:

Ravi Kannan R (Director and Surgical Oncologist, Cachar Cancer Hospital and Research Centre)
Manju Shree Srivastava (Founding Trustee of Ekal Abhiyan)
Menaka Guruswamy & Arundhati Katju (Senior Advocates at the Supreme Court of India)
Pushpa Preeya (Indian scrivener)
Sujit Chattopadhyay (Indian teacher)
Youth Icon:

A P Dhillon (Indo-Canadian Singer, Rapper, and Record Producer)
Anirudh Ravichander (Indian music composer)
Kusha Kapila (Social media personality, Comedian, actress, and YouTuber)
Ranveer Allahbadia (YouTuber)
Trinetra Haldar Gummaraju (Transgender Artist)

The ‘CNN-News18 Indian of the Year’ awards have a rich history of honoring outstanding individuals, with past recipients including luminaries like Narendra Modi, Neeraj Chopra, Virat Kohli, A R Rahman, and Manmohan Singh, among others.

This event, now in its sixteenth year, stands as a symbol of excellence in the realm of news television.

Zakka Jacob, Managing Editor of CNN-News18, expressed, “The ‘CNN-News18 Indian of the Year’ awards have evolved into an unparalleled platform that recognizes remarkable Indians from diverse domains. The immense success and participation of distinguished personalities have elevated its prestige, making it one of the most esteemed awards in the industry.”

Online voting for the awards has commenced and will remain open throughout November on CNN-News18’s channel, social media pages, and news18.com.

After a rigorous evaluation process involving public votes and expert judgment, the winners will be revealed in an awards ceremony.

For more information and to cast your vote, please visit www.indianoftheyear.com. The awards represent a celebration of India’s brightest talents and their contributions to the nation’s growth and development.