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Back in Hyderabad after a hiatus of nine years, the much-awaited Devi Awards witnessed an evening of grandeur and brilliance. The event that unfurled on Sunday (October 12) honoured 10 extraordinary women from different walks of life, each hailing from the Telugu states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
The chief guest for the evening, Justice V Ramasubramanian, was joined by TNIE Group CEO Lakshmi Menon, Editorial Director Prabhu Chawla and Resident Editor (Telangana) T Kalyan Chakravarthy in a heartwarming ceremony, admiring and appreciating the immense dedication of these trailblazers. With presenting partner Adani; celebration partners Radico and Telangana Tourism; Freedom Healthy Cooking Oils and TGSCO as silver partners; and Manepally Jewellers Private Limited and India Circus by Krsnaa Mehta as associate partners, the evening was all about heartfelt moments and inspiring stories of these women who have continued to shape the world with their charismatic presence, passion and hard work.
“Hyderabad is home, so when you’re at home and you’re comfortable, your mind can do other things; and then we create. I’m extremely proud of Lamakaan and my co-founders are sitting right there in the audience. Thank you for making me a Devi. Thank you for the honour, The New Indian Express; it’s humbling to be with the other Devis over here. With the empowerment in my power, I hope to make this world a better place. I hope to speak out freely against racism, casteism, classism, fascism and genocide.”
“Thank you, The New Indian Express. I am not a person of many words; my language is different. But still, I would like to say that the human touch in art cannot be replaced because any kind of technology is lesser than the human mind. That’s what I feel. So, when that human touch goes, I don’t think the world will survive.
“Dr Jane Goodall said that everybody can make a difference, but you have to choose what kind of difference you will make. I think the easiest way to help animals is to not eat them. I want to take a minute to talk about a very important campaign in the animal rights sector, NoMo50. There’s only one legislation that regulates animal abuse — Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960. The maximum amount of penalty for animal cruelty in this law is INR 50. The regulation is dated, and we’ve been campaigning for it to be amended, for the penalties to be corrected and hopefully, serve as an actual deterrent to cruelty.
“I want to give a shoutout to why the pursuit of knowledge is important for its own sake. As scientists, we seem to always be asked — why do you do this and why do I care? Why is it important to society? I want to share that the pursuit of science, of knowledge — we do it because we find it exciting. Then I have to think about why it’s important to society. It’s a selfish pursuit in some sense, but it always has an application. Thank you for this recognition, because I feel that it is recognition such as this that will inspire the young women today to be leaders of tomorrow.”
“This morning, I got a message that said Rekha Devi, the award has already become so popular. The ethos of Kalakriti India is public to art and art to public; this is what we had conceptualised in 2002. We’ll be celebrating 25 years soon. These years really flew by because art is such a constantly evolving place. Hyderabad now has been recognised as an art destination, with the India Art Fair coming here from Delhi. I’m really thankful.”
“As a designer, when I started making a collection that I was extremely passionate about, through the process we figured how much hand craftsmanship means to the wearer as well — who is investing so much money, and they deserve to get a pure fabric and the purest form of handcraftsmanship. So right now, we employ about 400 craftsmen, and we only do handwork.”
“My husband and I have been working for the government sector for the last 25 years and I especially, for the last 20 years with plastic surgery— reconstructive and plastic. In this society, there is a lot of criticism for government doctors, but I was surprised when I got the message that I got selected for this award. Thank you for recognising my services.”
“There is no recognition for women in the agriculture sector and our journey started with the question ‘why?’ So, this Devi Award is an honour and recognition for our Millet Sisters who are struggling for their sustainable livelihoods and also protecting their biodiversity.”
“I’m so happy and grateful for this moment — it’s something I’ll cherish forever. I also want to thank TNIE for hosting such a wonderful event and for encouraging me. My motivation has always been my family. My biggest goal is to take care of them and help my dad to retire early, who’s worked hard all his life.”
“This award is an incredible recognition for the entire mapmygenome team. For nearly 20 years, we’ve been helping people shape their health and wellness through personalised genomics and DNA analysis, with the hope that everyone can live healthier, happier and longer lives,” said Deepika Rallapalli, digital marketing strategist, who received the award on Anu’s behalf.
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