Ten Honored with South Asian Excellence Awards

By SUDHIR VYAS Special to India-West NEW YORK — The grand ballroom of the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel reverberated with the sounds of South Asian music and thunderous applause as 10 winners of the first South Asian Excellence Awards walked down the aisle May 10 to receive their honors from such celebrities as Shaukat Aziz, former prime minister of Pakistan; ace tennis player of India Vijay Amritraj; “Indian Idol” 2007 winner Prashant Tamang; and Bollywood actress Pooja Batra. Over 400 guests, who included the crème de la crème of the South Asian community, attended the two-and–a-half hour black tie event. The glitzy evening, hosted by Sony Entertainment Television Asia, was made possible with the support of grand sponsors Wal-Mart and Sam's Club. The event was also telecast to Sony’s worldwide audience in the U.S., UK, Europe, Africa, India, the Middle East, Pakistan and Australia. This first-of-its-kind award was created to recognize and honor South Asian achievers for a wide swath of accomplishments, in the fields of business, entertainment, social and public service, science, sports, literature, technology and IT, and the performing and visual arts, with a special award given to two young achievers demonstrating outstanding excellence in their field. According to Rajan Singh, executive vice president, International Business, of SET Asia, “South Asians in the U.S. are certainly making their mark in all spheres of life. At SET Asia, we believe that the time has come to recognize their contributions and to showcase them to the world. This is precisely why, as a global TV channel, we have taken the lead in honoring those outstanding South Asian men and women who stand as icons and examples of excellence and integrity to their community." The winners of the awards were given an opportunity to inspire future achievers and also act as catalysts for the achievers of today, and they did it in style. While most of the honorees dedicated their awards to their parents, and mothers in particular (the event being held on the eve of Mother’s Day), some dedicated them to their colleagues who had worked side by side with them. Robin Raina, who won the South Asian Personality of the Year award, called upon the people to rededicate themselves to the eradication of poverty from the world map. While Bapsi Sidhwa, who won the Literature award, dedicated her award to the Indian and Pakistani writers in the U.S.; Purvi Shah, executive director of Sakhi, a women’s organization, dedicated her award to the thousands of South Asian oppressed women living in the U.S. She called upon the audience to join hands to create a change for the better. Speaking on the occasion, former prime minister Aziz said, “The biggest asset of the South Asian countries were our people. They have achieved a lot for the community wherever they have gone, and the community must now work for peace, prosperity and progress of South Asia.” Raina, in his brief speech upon receiving the award, said, “Poverty was the mother of all religions and everyone gathered here must try to eradicate poverty.” Raina, who has launched the Robin Raina Foundation, has recently undertaken a project to build 6,000 concrete homes for slum dwellers in Bawana in northeastern Delhi. These slum dwellers have been living in make-shift huts and temporary structures where they were subject to the elements of nature as well as to accidents like fires, which burned down their homes and their belongings. Under this project, RRF will build brick and concrete homes for them. Contributions will help with the construction costs of one house, each one of which costs roughly $1,500-2,000,” he said. The event was a show of pomp and technology with amazing lighting by individuals especially flown in from London. The audience was entertained by the multi-talented singer, songwriter and composer Raghav Sachar, “Indian Idol” winner Prashant Tamang, and the Jamaican reggae sensation Chaka Demus and Pliers. The Dhol Foundation, backed by New York City Bhangra Club dancers, were one of the highlights with a thunderous performance on a dhol and Bhangra number. The award winners were: Young Achiever Award: Sponsor presenter: Tariq Khan (Nationwide) Presenter: Sanjaya Malakar Winners: Farah Taslima and Ishan Mandani Science Award: Sponsor presenter: P.S. Rajagopal (Air India) Presenter: Kaysar Ridha Winner: Dr. Anil Kaul Performing and Visual Arts Award: Sponsor presenter: Shailendra Bansal (Malani Jewelers) Presenter: Mira Veda Winner: Shazia Sikander Social Service Award: Sponsor presenter: Swetal Patel (Raja Foods) Presenter: Aasif Mandvi Winner: Purvi Shah Sports Award: Sponsor presenter: Amin Hemani (Raza) Presenter: Janina Gavankar Winner: Mohini Bhardwaj Business Award: Sponsor presenter: Arti Kumar Caprihan ( Western Union) Presenter: Vijay Amritraj Winner: Shafi Saxena Technology and IT Award: Sponsor presenter: Paul Dujardin (Mpingi) Presenter: Prashant Temang Winner: Dr. S. Somasegar Entertainment Award: Sponsor presenter: Kunal Dasgupta (SET) Presenter: Pooja Batra Winner: Lena Khan Literature Award: Sponsor presenter: T.P. Mahesh (Tilda) Presenter: Guillermo Linares Winner: Bapsi Sidhwa Personality of the Year Award: Sponsor presenter: Michael Fung (Wal-Mart) Presenter: Shaukat Aziz Winner: Robin Raina.

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