Mumbai: Adding yet another feather to its cap, TV9 Network’s News9 Plus – the world’s first news OTT – took home two honours at the prestigious Red Ink Awards 2023. Beating nearly 1200 entries in the crime and investigation category and in the lifestyle and entertainment category, Muhammad Wajihulla walked away with two trophies at the event in Opera House, Mumbai on Saturday the 2 December 2023.
Annually organised by the iconic Mumbai Press Club since 1968, the ceremony celebrates journalists and journalism. The top prize in Crime and Investigation went to the impactful ‘Bringing Down the Towers,’ a documentary depicting pensioners’ 11-year struggle against builders of Delhi NCR's tallest residential towers.
Similarly honored in lifestyle and entertainment, ‘Shooting Stars’ portrays two young individuals from a Chhattisgarh village who inspired nearly half their community to pursue content creation over conventional jobs.
Wajihulla remains the only journalist on the list of winners from the evening to bag more than one laurel. Apart from that, Aditya Raj Kaul’s and Lakshna Gulati’s story Showtime in Kashmir, Soumalya Santikari’s - The FIFA World Cup in Qatar, and Shantasree Sarkar’s Killing the Aravallis were among the top shortlisted stories and received Red Ink Special Mention Awards.
Both Wajihulla’s documentaries were honoured at the Red Ink Awards, which in its 13th year running bestowed national recognition on a total of 30 journalists from across the country, for stories in print and video formats. This year’s edition featured prominent personalities on the panel of jurors, including former Mumbai Police Commissioner D. Shivanandan, The Anatomy of Loss author Arjun R. Gaind, Free Press Journal executive editor S. Balakrishnan, documentary filmmaker Brahmanand Singh, the Dean of St Paul’s Media Institute Carol Andrade and theatre director Feroz Abbas Khan, among others.
“News9 Plus is all about nuanced, fact-based, and thorough journalism, steering clear of sensationalism. Our focus is on narrating stories that showcase the remarkable resilience and courage of individuals making a significant impact. It's a privilege to share these narratives, and I'm sincerely thankful for the acknowledgment,” stated Wajihulla. He extended his gratitude to editor Sandeep Unnithan and the TV9 Network management for their unwavering support.
Catch these award-winning stories on News9 Plus, India’s first news OTT platform that is committed to disrupting the news genre by telling real-life news stories through OTT, the platform of tomorrow.
