Mumbai: CNN-News18, India's number one English news channel, has announced the highly anticipated 2023 edition of the ‘CNN-News18 Indian of the Year’ awards. Regarded as the most credible viewer’s choice awards in India, this year ‘Indian of the Year’ will recognise India’s most influential personalities across nine categories.

The ‘Indian of the Year’ title will be awarded in categories such as Business, Sports, Entertainment, Youth Icon, Rising Sports Star, Social Change, and Climate Warriors. The selection process will be a blend of both expert judgment and public voting; with 50% of the decision-making power given to the audience, and the remaining 50 percent is entrusted to the jury, striking a balance between the collective wisdom of the masses and the discerning eye of experts.

The distinguished panel of jurors includes renowned figures 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 2023 nominees have been selected for their remarkable achievements in their respective fields. Here are the contenders for ‘Indian of the Year 2023’ title:

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 Athelete), 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 past recipients of the ‘CNN-News18 Indian of the Year’ title include extraordinary personalities such as Narendra Modi, Neeraj Chopra, Virat Kohli, A R Rahman, Manmohan Singh, and the People of Chennai, across the years. Having seen twelve editions since its inception, ‘CNN-News18 Indian of the Year’ has cemented its position as the biggest awards in the domain of news television and an institution of impeccable credibility.

CNN-News18 Managing Editor Zakka Jacob said, “Over the past sixteen years, ‘CNN-News18 Indian of the Year’ awards have evolved into an unparalleled platform that reveres remarkable Indians across diverse domains. The massive success of this initiative and participation by some of the country’s most distinguished personalities has raised the bar for this platform making it one of the most accredited awards in the industry. A flagship event of this magnitude not only elevates our channel's prestige but also generates immense value for the brands that partner with us.”

“The widespread appeal of 'CNN-News18 Indian of the Year' awards is attributed to its diverse categories and the exceptional individuals nominated for this recognition over the years. We are continually building on the marquee initiative’s legacy every year, by introducing new categories that mirror the inclusive progress of India. We extend our best wishes to the esteemed nominees,” said Network18 CEO – English News Smriti Mehra.

Online voting has commenced and will remain open throughout the month of November on CNN-News18 channel, its social media pages and news18.com. Following a rigorous evaluation process combining public votes and expert judgment, the winners of the 'Indian of the Year' title will be unveiled in an awards ceremony. Visit www.indianoftheyear.com to vote for your favourite Indian and for more details regarding the awards.