Asian Voice Political and Public Life Awards

www.abplgroup.com

MARCH 2009

To those who serve.....

T

he Members' Dinning Room at the House of Commons was buzzing with excitement on Thursday 26th February, when over 200 special guests gathered for the Asian Voice Political & Public Life Awards for 2008.

Geoff Hoon MP, who flew in from Paris.

Mr Hoon is the Secretary of State for Transport and has previously served as Minister for Europe, Secretary of State for Defence and Chief Whip.

The winners were voted for by our readers, from shortlists compiled by three parliamentarians; Lord King of West Bromwich, Baroness Howells and Marsha Singh MP. Our Publisher and Editor, C.B. Patel and Mrs Jyotsna Shah, Managing Editor were on hand to present the traditional garlands to each of the winners, as well as to Mr Hoon and our other special guests.

The Parliamentarian of the Year award was given to Harriet Harman MP. During her time at the Parliament, Ms Harman has campaigned to improve the rights of minority groups. In her cur-

Rt Hon Harriet Harman QC MP receiving the Parliamentarian of the year award

The awards are held to celebrate the achievements of those who have made a special contribution to our political and public life over the last 12 months in a variety of fields. This year lived up to expectations as a succession of major figures picked up awards for their efforts.

The room was packed to the brim, when the compere for the evening Ms Sheena Bhattessa kicked off the show.

The first set of awards this year were presented by the special guest

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Mr Bhanu Choudhrie receiving the Entrepreneur of the year award

Asian Voice & Gujarat Samachar 2009

Mr Dolar Popat receiving the Community Award (for promoting the community in politics) from Eric Pickles MP

rent roles as Deputy Leader of the Labour Party, Leader of the House of Commons and Minister for Women and Equality she has continued her commitment to minority groups.

Collecting her award, she spoke of her delight at being honoured by the readers of the Asian Voice.

The Opposition Parliamentarian of the Year, was awarded to Sarah Teather MP. On her election as Liberal Democrat MP for Brent East in 2003, Ms Teather became the youngest MP, or the ‘Baby of the House’ and since then she has rapidly established herself as one of her party’s leading figures.

Mrs Jyotsna Shah Managing Editor Gujarat Samachar garlanding the Chief Guest, Rt Hon Geoff Hoon MP

The Restaurant of the Year was given to Amin Ali, owner of The Red Fort in Soho, London. Mr Ali has delighted customers to his restaurant for over 25 years and numerous parliamentarians and ministers have eaten at this famous restaurant, helping to secure the reputation of The Red Fort as one of the top Asian restaurants in the capital.

The Backbencher of the Year went to Rob Marris MP. Mr Marris is the Member of Parliament for Wolverhampton South West and is Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group for UK Sikhs. He is renowned for his tireless devotion to his constituents.

The Entrepreneur of the Year was given to a young entrepreneur who is at the head of the next generation of Asian businessmen in this country.

Bhanu Choudhrie has been the driving force behind his company’s success, as

Ms Natasha Mudhar receiving the Media Company of the year from Caroline Flint MP

well as being actively involved with education and health charities.

Eric Pickles MP, Chairman of the Conservative Party presented the second set of awards.

Mr Sheena Bhattessa Pickles was previcompere of the event ously the National Co-Chairman of the Joint Committee Against Racism and spoke to the room about his experiences in Yorkshire before his election as an MP. Mr Pickles presented the Community Award for promoting the community in politics to Dolar Popat.

Mr Popat was honoured for his activism in the Conservative Party for over 30 years. He has served on the

Robert Howard Marris MP receiving the Government backbencher of the year award

Sarah Teather MP, receiving the Opposition Parliamentarian of the year award

CBE, the former Lord Mayor of presented to Natasha Mudhar, Bradford. Mr Ajeeb has devoted his life Managing Director Sterling Media. to public service in West Yorkshire and The Journalist of the Year award was the first Asian Lord Mayor in the United Kingdom.

As he was unable to collect his award personally due to health reasons, his son Irfan and Marsha Singh MP, were at the ceremony to accept the award on his behalf.

Asian Broadcaster of the Year was given to Sony Entertainment Television Asia. After launching in the UK & Europe in 1998, SET Asia have established themselves as one On behalf of his father Mohammed Ajeeb, son Irfan of the leading providers of Asian Ajeeb and Marsha Singh receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award from Eric Pickles MP programming in this country.

The Minister for Europe, Caroline Flint MP, gave away the third set of awards. She spoke about the contribution of the Asian community to the UK, before presenting the award for

Mr Amin Ali receiving the Restaurant of the year award from Rt Hon Geoff Hoon MP

Anglo Asian Conservative Association and the Conservative Ethnic Diversity Council and constantly championed the role of the Asian community in British politics.

The Lifetime Achievement Award, which was given to Mohammed Ajeeb

Members of Slumdog Millionaire receiving the Special Award for International Achievement

was given to the Chief of the European Bureau at the Indo-Asian News Service, Dipankar De Sarkar. Mr De Sarkar has been a journalist for 30 years, more than 20 of which have been spent Ms Ann Treneman receiving the Parliamentary Journalist of the year award

Mr Rajesh Rupani of Sony TV receiving the Asian Broadcaster of the year award from Eric Pickles MP

Media Company of the Year.

This went to Sterling Media, an international communications agency covering PR, marketing and brand management, advertising, events and outreach with specialist diversity, entertainment and digital divisions.

The company was founded by Teji Singh, the only ethnic minority woman in Britain to head a major media and marketing company. The award was

Mr Naresh Goyal and Mrs Anita Goyal receiving the International Entrepreneurs of the year award

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Asian Voice & Gujarat Samachar 2009

South Asia is unparalleled.

The TV Personality of the Year was given to a familiar face for viewers of BBC1’s Eastenders. Nina Wadia plays Zainab Masood in the show. Her performances have gained critical and public acclaim and have led to an increasingly loyal following from the show’s fans.

Mr Dipankar De Sarkar receiving the Journalist of the year award from Caroline Flint MP

working out of London as a foreign correspondent for the Indian and global media, and as an editor for the international media.

The final award presented by Ms Flint was the Professional of the Year.

This was given to Nina Amin, Tax Partner at one of the country’s leading accountancy firms.

Ms Nina Amin receiving the Professional of the year award from Caroline Flint MP

On behalf of Baroness Uddin her son Mr Sharif Uddin receiving the award Peer of the year

The final award of the evening went to a film that is no stranger to being honoured at lavish ceremonies.

Just days after picking up eight Oscars, including Best Picture and Best Director, the makers of Slumdog Millionaire were presented with the Special Award for International

Achievement.

In addition to the Oscar success, the film has won seven BAFTA awards, five Critics’ Choice Awards and four Golden Globe Awards and can now add an Asian Voice Political and Public Life Award to the list!

This award was presented by the two Cabinet Ministers, Mr Hoon and Ms Flint, to Christian Colson, the producer of the film. He was joined on stage by Nick Toon and Katherine Butler from Film4.

Mr C.B. Patel closed the ceremony thanking all the guests and winners for attending the awards.

We appreciate.....

Ms Nina Wadia receiving the TV Personality of the year award

Ms Amin is a qualified chartered accountant, and has established herself as one of the leading Asian professionals in the country.

The fourth and final set of awards were given away by Mr Hoon, who was invited to return to present them, starting with the Parliamentary Journalist of the Year.

Anne Treneman, a sketchwriter from The Times was the winner. Ms Treneman is renowned for her acerbic wit, which she targets at politicians of all backgrounds and political parties.

Despite this, she is hugely respected

by MPs and was warmly applauded by the Parliamentarians in the room when she collected her award.

The International Entrepreneurs of the Year award was presented to Naresh and Anita Goyal of Jet Airways.

Jet Airways operates over 400 flights to 64 destinations every day and is India’s largest private domestic airline.

The Goyals contribution to aviation in

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There is never a dull moment in UK political and public life and if I may say so, it is, at most times, the cynosure of all eyes both at home and abroad. Very often the ramifications of the decisions made in our political and public arena are of international consequences and impact on the lives of millions. That Britain’s opinion is sought, and has been historically, in major events accross the globe speaks of our statesman-esque stature and the skill and intellect of our policy makers. Whatever the political affiliations and the criticism they may draw from various quarters their achievements are worth recognising and honoring . Whether at a national, international or local level, our elected representatives perform a vital and often silent role in ensuring that the nation’s well being is of the highest standard.

Our multicultural society is perhaps a model for the rest of the world and the fact that our major political parties are committed to upholding the values of all faiths and communities is a reflection of the greatness of this nation. It is heartening indeed to see many from the Asian community making a mark in our political and public life.

We are living in challenging times and the scale and ferocity of the unfolding events have turned the spotlight on our policy makers . The mettle of those in political and public life is being tested to an extent not seen for a long time. This nation has endured wars, plagues, political unrests and in recent years, terrorism and one can safely say that we have men and women whose intellect and integrity will help us weather the storm and come out stronger.

CB Patel Publisher / Editor Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar

Message from the winners Entrepreneur of the year Mr Bhanu Choudhrie

I am delighted and deeply honoured to have received this award from Asian Voice. It is a great pleasure, and somewhat humbling, to receive recognition in this way from one's peers for what one tries to contribute. There are many in the Asian community who lead the way in business and I am honoured to have been singled out on this occasion. Asian Voice deserves praise, I think, not just as a vibrant publication but for providing a cohesive forum for the Asian community in the UK and for articulating our engagement within the nation. The awards ceremony in the House of Commons was an unforgettable event. I would like, again, to offer a heartfelt thank you for the honour you have bestowed on me.

TV Personality of the year Ms Nina Wadia

'I was delighted to be awarded the TV Personality of the Year at the Asian Voice Political and Public Life Awards.

It was a great honour to be selected and a pleasure to attend the ceremony in such a beautiful setting with all the wonderful people who have made a special contribution this year.

My gratitude goes out to all the readers for voting for me. It means so much to me. I truly appreciate it and hope they keep enjoying the show.'

Community Award (for promoting the community in politics) Mr Dolar Popat

It was a great honour for me to receive this award, especially from my Party Chairman, at this very important gathering of industry leaders and politicians at the House of Commons.

The award was given to me for ‘Promoting the Community in Politics’, when in fact I have always ‘Promoted the Conservative Party in the Community’.

The reason for doing so is that I genuinely believe that our community shares the same ideals as the Conservative Party.

When I first came to this country in 1971, I saw that the Conservative Party related more to my way of life than the Socialist Labour Party in power at the time.

I was also thankful to the Conservative Party for allowing my fellow Ugandan Asians into the country at a very difficult time. Therefore it has been both exciting and challenging pushing the Conservative Party agenda in the community, and I am happy to continue the good work for the Conservative Party to ensure that both the Party and the community interact well in this wonderful country that we live in.

Opposition Backbencher of the year Adam Holloway MP

Government Backbencher of the Year Robert Howard Marris MP

As a leading publication, Asian Voice keeps the whole community well informed on a weekly basis. So I am delighted, as well as humbled, to have received its "Government Backbencher of the Year" award 2009.

In Wolverhampton, we are fortunate to have several long-established Asian communities, including Hindus, Sikhs, Moslems, and Buddhists; principally from Punjab and Gujarat. Their presence enriches the city, with energy and steadfastness and faith.

The peaceable community relations in Wolverhampton did not drop out of the sky: they came about through the hard work of many people, over many years. Building on that positive experience, I work with others in Parliament, to try to progress matters at the national level.

It is a work-in-progress. As I always say, it's like riding a bicycle: if you stop working, you fall off - but that's the beauty of life!

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"Thank you very very much for the award - I am genuinely chuffed, as are the rest of the team. In truth, we don't do any more for our Asian constituents than for anyone else - and this makes the award all the more valuable for our teams morale.

In Gravesham we have a very considerable Asian community - from India, the Punjab, and the area around Jalandhar in particular.

But there are specific problems confronting our Asian community, not least the inability of the system to recognise that we have many many citizens of overseas origin whoms problems are often treated as standard "immigration" issues: I refer particularly to guests for weddings and for those needing family members to come over at short notice for funerals. We regularly have to get in touch direct with the High Commission in Delhi to sort out such issues. Or only this week we have had a bit of a nightmare getting specialist carpenters to the UK from India to do highly refined carpentry on the new Gurdwara being built in Gravesend - the system expects such craftsmen to be able to speak English...

Anyway, thanks again for this - and keep up the good work."

International Entrepreneurs of the Year Mr Naresh Goyal and Mrs Anita Goyal

It is a privilege for my wife, Neeta and me to be invited to the House of Commons on this auspicious occasion to receive the Asian Voice “International Entrepreneurs of the Year’’ award-particularly when it is based on the votes cast by the readers of this newspaper. We are deeply grateful to them.

This award is a tribute to each and every member of the Jet Airways extended family who have worked tirelessly over the years to make our company a truly International Airline in every sense of the word. Neeta and I would like to dedicate the award to them.

One of the most important roles of an international airline such as ours is to build bridges between countries and continents so as to facilitate commercial and cultural interaction and bring people together. So it is particularly fitting that this ceremony is being held here in London, one of the world’s great aviation hubs and a very important destination in our own international route network.

We thank Asian Voice for the work it does in bringing together the Indian community in the UK. We thank its readers for the recognition accorded to us with this prestigious award and our particular thanks go to you, Secretary of State, for presenting it to us.

Journalist of the year Mr Dipankar De Sarkar

It was an honour to receive the Journalist of the Year award from the Asian Voice, a publication that is widely respected for its reach and coverage.

The normal job of a foreign correspondent is to interpret foreign societies for audiences and readers back home. But the assignment for an Indian correspondent working out of the UK is made additionally complex by two factors. First is the process of globalisation, which is rapidly making the world a smaller place in terms of information. And the Indian I.T world, as we all know, is exploding. Second is the existence of the Indian Diaspora, which often involves the correspondent writing about 'Indians to Indians' in a manner of speaking. This is where the Asian Voice comes in with its unique unparalleled coverage of Diaspora issues.

The contribution of people of Indian origin is now widely acknowledged as one of the enduring success stories of post-War Britain. The Asian Voice Political and Public Life Awards today is the gauge by which we measure this stellar contribution.

Parliamentary Journalist of the year Ms Ann Treneman

Professional of the year Ms Nina Amin

In a highly successful career spanning 30 years, Nina Amin, Tax Partner, KPMG, has won several accolades for her stellar role in a number of high profile initiatives. She was bestowed the ‘Professional Of The Year’ award from a selection of high-achieving contenders.

Speaking to Asian Voice, a delighted Nina Amin said,“I am overwhelmed and delighted with this award, which is one of the highlights of my career to date. I think I’m very lucky to get to work with some amazing business and great colleagues and I really enjoy what I do. It’s particularly great to receive this award from the readers of Asian Voice and such a distinguished panel from the Asian Community.”

Special Award for International Achievement Team at Slumdog Millionaire

'The whole team behind the making of 'Slumdog Millionaire' is deeply honoured to have received this award. We set out to make a film that was urgent, dynamic and true to what we saw in the here and now, and not mired in the old cliches of West-meets-East. It is a source of great pride to us that 'Slumdog' has been embraced in the way it has by Asian audiences the world over'.

It was a wonderful surprise to hear that I had won an award from Asian Voice for parliamentary journalist of the year and I must admit that I still find it hard to believe, even though the award not sits on my bookshelf. I would like to thank the readers very much. It was a particular joy to receive it from Geoff Hoon, who is the transport secretary now but who has been on of my favourite subjects - some would say victim! - for many years now. As a sketchwriter, I am far more used to receiving brickbats (mostly from politicians, it must be said) than accolades. It is wonderful to be appreciated. Thank you very much!

Restaurant of the year Mr Amin Ali

Let me begin by first thanking Asian Voice for conferring this prestigious award on me. I am both delighted and humbled by this honour. At The Red Fort, it has always been my endeavour to bring the finest in culinary excellence to all our treasured customers at all times. My team is passionate about the food we lovingly prepare in our state of the art kitchens, and we take pride in delivering them with a smile to our discerning clientele amidst stylish and chic surroundings. It fills me with joy today to receive this award and encourages me to work tirelessly towards surpassing my very own standards, well established and nurtured over the last 25 years. May I take this opportunity to thank Asian Voice once again for giving me this unparalleled honour.

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Media Company of the year Ms Teji Singh

I am truly honoured that Sterling Media has been recognised for its efforts and humbled to have been shortlisted amongst a very high profile calibre of winners. We have always felt that Asian Voice is a reflection of the Asian community and has created a dialogue that has been responsive and relevant to both first and second and also third and fourth generations of Asians.

In today’s society where communities are becoming ever more fragmented, it is imperative that we reach out to

and engage with our audiences in ways that are culturally sensitive. We have always believed that diverse issues should be given mass awareness and with Multiculturalism and diversity as powerful references, a need has arisen for greater acknowledgement across all sectors of society.

The Asian Voice Political and Public Life awards has reinstated the significance of the multicultural community by providing a platform to highlight the achievements, drive and determination of both Asian men and women, who have made a lasting difference and contribution to our society.

Life Time Achievement Award

Asian Broadcaster of the year

It’s a great privilege and honour to be conferred the Life Time Achievement Award of the year.

Unfortunately, I could not attend the distinguished ceremony due to ill health. However, my son Irfan was delighted to attend the event and to receive the award on my behalf.

Hopefully the recognition of my contribution to political and public life will inspire young members of our community to follow suit. I’m proud to make a mark in British politics by being the first Asian Lord Mayor in Britain. I attribute my success to hard work, dedication, courage, and honesty and my adherence to the principal of serving all people without any distinction.

Finally, my congratulations to all the recipients of the awards and my sincere thanks to the Asian Voice and especially to C.B Patel who has made outstanding contribution to the development of Asian print media in Britain.

It gives all of us at Sony Entertainment Television Asia enormous pride and honour to be the recipient of the Asian Broadcaster of the Year accolade at the Asian Voice Political & Public Life Award ceremony.

Our prime motto at Sony Entertainment Television Asia has always been to provide the ultimate home entertainment to our audiences the world over with traditional values and customs of back home so that our viewers can experience ‘home away from home’ feeling when they watch our channels. And to be conferred with this prestigious award is laying testimony to the fact that our audiences not just love our programme offering promoting UK based talent like ‘Indian Idol’, ‘Boogie Woogie’, but also fully encourage and support our community initiatives like the British Asian Sports Awards that encourages the youth to be socially active and physically fit in today’s sedentary lifestyle dominated society.

Mohammed Ajeeb, CBE

Peer of the Year Award Baroness Uddin

‘I am honoured and delighted to receive this award. Too often the achievements of men and women from our communities are not celebrated and I feel that the Asian Voice Political and Public Life Awards help enormously in acknowledging their efforts.

As the first woman Muslim Peer in the UK, I take it upon myself to inspire other women to get involved in public life.

At the moment women are shockingly under represented in local Government and the presence of minority women are unacceptably low. I am therefore delighted that since May 2008 I have had the privilege of chairing the cross-party set up by Harriet Harman, Minister for Women and Equality, to encourage more Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) women to become local councillors.

I am confident that this and other similar initiatives encourage BAME women to come forward and take their rightful place in both local and central government.’

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Rajesh Rupani

Congratulations to all the winners of the Asian Voice Political & Public Life Award Bharat and Rashmi Oza

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AlfaAviation:A4 Temp 13/03/2009 16:50 Page 1

Congratulations from everyone at Alpha Aviation to Bhanu Choudhrie on winning the !Entrepreneur of the Year!

at the prestigious Asian Voice -Political & Public Life Awards.