Indian industrialists bag UK Asian Awards

Top Indian industrialists N R Narayana Murthy and Adi Godrej besides actor Anupam Kher were among a number of personalities from Asia to be recognised by the UK for their contributions in various fields.

Infosys co-founder Murthy was named 'Philanthropist of the Year' at the third edition of the annual Asian Awards here in a gala ceremony on Tuesday.

"Murthy famously said that 'the power of money is to give it away' and this is a statement he continues to live by," read the award citation for India's IT guru.

Industrialist Adi Godrej bagged the 'Entrepreneur of the Year' award for his contribution to Indian industry while Ravi Ruia, vice-chairman of the Essar Group, won in the 'Outstanding Contribution to Sustainability' category, for his company's high sustainability ratings.

"I am enormously proud that this event to recognise achievement in the Asian community is held in London. There is a huge power shift in our world and economy and the success of the British economy in the coming decades will depend on seizing opportunities that arise out of Asia.

"I am confident that Britain can seize those opportunities because of our shared values, the spirit of enterprise and strong work ethic," said UK Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne, the keynote speaker at the event.

Other winners across different categories included actors Anupam Kher and Nina Wadia for Outstanding Achievement in Cinema and Television respectively and author Hanif Kureishi for Outstanding Achievement in the Arts.

British actor of Indian origin, Sir Ben Kingsley, best known for his role of Mahatma Gandhi in Richard Attenborough's 1984 film, had already been announced as the winner of the Fellowship Award for 2013.

The awards, this year in partnership with Sotheby's International Realty, had cast their net wider to include nominees from the whole of Asian continent as reflected in the Founder's Award being posthumously presented to Chinese American actor Bruce Lee.

"I was keen to re-define the term Asian in this country to make it more globally inclusive and this year the Asian Awards has truly lived up to its name, celebrating global Asian achievement on a triumphant night," said founder Paul Sagoo.