TIMES NOW celebrates the Real Action Heroes with Hon'ble Prime Minister Narendra Modi

It was a historic occasion on January 14, 2016, in New Delhi, as Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi showered fulsome praise on the selfless and inspiring achievements of 12 Amazing Indians, winners of the 4^th edition of TIMES NOW’s memorable and impactful series, Amazing Indians. On the occasion, the Hon’ble Prime Minister not only felicitated the winners by handing them their trophies, but also delivered a heartfelt speech that held everyone, including the high-profile audience at the event, transfixed.

TIMES NOW is giving television lovers an opportunity to watch and be inspired by the Hon’ble Prime Minister’s seminal address and the equally inspirational individual stories of the 12 winners of Amazing Indians: the channel will air the landmark initiative, the Finale of the 4^th series of Amazing Indians, on Saturday, 23 January, 2016, at 8 pm, and Sunday, 24 January, 2016, at 12 noon.

Speaking on the occasion, the Hon’ble Prime Minister said that the (winning Amazing Indians) awardees were people whose life journey had been like a diamond that passes through great travails before being recognized and acknowledged by the world at large.

He regretted that in India, most of the narrative has been built around the lives of those in power, or the ruling class. Those who have struggled and achieved noble objectives, or served society, despite severe obstacles and adversity, are rarely recognized and celebrated, he added.

The Prime Minister said that today in India, a teacher who might have inspired hundreds of young children to become responsible members of society, often remains unnoticed and unheard, while even a relatively junior political functionary is feted.

The audience at the high profile ceremony included many industry stalwarts and dignitaries such as Union Defence Minister Shri Manohar Parrikar, Union Minister of Urban Development Shri K Venkaiah Naidu, Union Minister of Finance Shri Arun Jaitley, Union Minister of Communication and Information Technology Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad and Dr. Harsh Vardhan – Minister of Science and Technology.

The glittering ceremony also saw several thought leaders and dignitaries from various walks of life. These included Rajat Sharma, Anurag Thakur – BCCI Secretary, Ad world stalwarts like Piyush Pandey, Shashi Sinha, Ashish Bhasin, Prasoon Joshi, Businessworld and Exchange4media Group Editor-In-Chief Anurag Batra, politicians like Shazia Ilmi and Raghav Chadha and Olympic Silver medalist Lieutenant-Colonel Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, among others.

In its 4^th edition, TIMES NOW showcased more than 150 rousing stories of remarkable achievement by unsung heroes from the remotest corners of the country. Out of all the entries the following 12 individual across different categories were chosen by an eminent jury to be crowned as Amazing Indians –

n Educators Of India – Ruma Roka (Noida, Uttar Pradesh)

n Incredible Innovators – Chintakindi Mallesham (Nalgonda, Telangana)

n Ordinary Indians, Extraordinary Stories – Murugan S (Kochi, Kerala)

n Unstoppable Indians – S. Ramakrishnan (Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu)

n The Eco Saviours – Late Kallen Pokkudan (Kannur, Kerala)

n Young Indians, Big Achievements – Malavath Poorna (Nizamabad, Telangana)

n Young Indians, Big Achievements – Damini Sen (Raipur, Chhattisgarh)

n The Grassroots Soldiers – Popatrao Powar (Hiware, Maharashtra)

n Stree Shakti – Sunita Aralikar (Latur, Maharashtra)

n Global Indians – Yashraj Khaitan (Lakshmipura, Rajasthan)

n Energising India – Mathews K Mathew (Kalaketty, Kerala)

n Indian At Heart – Timothy William Grandage (Kolkata)

Over the years, Amazing Indians has gone on to become one of India’s most impactful events. It is a platform where India comes together to celebrate and pay tribute to the people who overcome odds to help others through their invincible spirit and never-back-down attitude thereby making them ‘Amazing Indians’.