Indian Nobel Prize Winners:
Rabindra Nath Tagore (1):
Author and educator, he founded the Shanti Niketan (1901) which later became the Vishwabharati University. Tagore was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1913 for his work Gitanjali. He was the first Asian recipient of the honour. His important works include Sonar Tari, Chaitali, Kalpana, Chitrangada and Sadhana. He composed the National Anthems of India and Bangladesh.
C. V. Raman (1930) :
Physicist Raman was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1930 for his study on the scattering of light, popularly known as The Raman Effect, the theory that describes the change in frequency of light while passing through a transparent medium. He founded the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore. He was awarded the Lenin Peace Prize in 1958 and conferred with the Bharat Ratna in 1954.
Hargobind Khorana (1968):
An American citizen of Indian origin, Dr. Hargobind Khorana was born in Raipur (Punjab), now in Pakistan. He took his Ph.D in Chemistry from the University of Liverpool and in 1960 joined the University of Wisconsin. Khorana was awarded the Nobel for Medicine in 1968 for the interpretation of genetic code and its function in protein synthesis. The co-winners of award along with Khurana were Robert W.Holley and W.Marshall Nirenberg.
Mother Teresa (1979):
The ‘Angel of Mercy’, Mother Teresa was born to Albanian parents in Skopliji, Yugoslavia and baptized Agnes Gonxa Bojaxhin. She came to India when she was 18 and soon founded the ‘Missionaries of Charity’ which was approved by the Vatican in 1950. She was given Indian citizenship in 1948. She was awarded Nobel Prize for Peace in 1979.
Subramanium Chandrashekhar (1983):
An American citizen of Indian origin, Dr. S. Chandrashekhar was born in Lahore, Pakistan and educated at the Presidency, Madras. He was the nephew of Sir C.V Raman. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for physics in 1983 for his theoretical studies of the physical process of importance to the structure and evolution of stars (The ‘Chandrashekhar Limit’).
Amartya Sen (1998):
The Lamont Professor of Philosophy and Economics at Harvard University, and a member of the World Bank Advisory Board, Amartya Sen was awarded the Nobel Prize for Economics in 1998. The Kerala University on May 18, 2000 decided to honor Nobel laureate Amartya Sen with an honorary doctorate in literature.
V. S. Naipaul (2001):
Literature. Though born in Trinidad and Tobago, he was of Indian descent and wrote extensively about the Indian diaspora.
Venkatraman Ramakrishnan (2009):
Chemistry (shared award). Though born in India, he was a naturalized US citizen at the time of the award. His work focused on the structure and function of the ribosome.
Kailash Satyarthi (2014):
Peace (shared award). He was awarded along with Malala Yousafzai for their struggle against the suppression of children and young people and for the right of all children to education.
Abhijit Banerjee (2019):
Economics (shared award). He was awarded along with Esther Duflo and Michael Kremer for their experimental approach to alleviating global poverty.
Some individuals, like Har Gobind Khorana, Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar, and Venkatraman Ramakrishnan, were born in India but became citizens of other countries before receiving the Nobel Prize. V. S. Naipaul, though of Indian descent, was born in Trinidad and Tobago. These individuals are still included because of their Indian heritage or connection.
Ramon Magsaysay Award Winners:
The Ramon Magsaysay Award, often referred to as the “Nobel Prize of Asia,” is an annual award instituted in April 1957 in memory of former Philippine President Ramon Magsaysay as an example of integrity in governance, courageous service to the people, and pragmatic idealism within a democratic society. It is awarded annually to Asians and Pacific Islanders in Government Service, Journalism, Literature and Creative Communication Arts, Social Work and Community Development.
The awards were given in six categories, five of which were discontinued in 2009: Government Service (1958–2008), Public Service (1958–2008), Community Leadership (1958–2008), Journalism, Literature, and Creative Communication Arts (1958–2008), Peace and International Understanding (1958–2008), Emergent Leadership (2001– ) and Uncategorised (2009 onwards).
Along with the recognition, awardees receive a certificate, a medallion and a monetary award of USD 50,000.
Indian Winners of the Ramon Magsaysay Award:
Government Service: Kiran Bedi (1994), T.N.Seshan (1996) and James Michael Lyngdoh (2003).
Public Service: Jayaprakash Narayan (1965), M.S. Subbulakshmi (1974), Manibhai Desai (1982), Lakshmi Chand Jain (1989), Banoo Jehangir Coyaji (1993) and V. Shanta (2005).
Community Leadership: Acharya Vinoba Bhave (1958), Verghese Kurien (1963), Dara Nusserwanji Khurody (1963), Tribhuvandas Kishibhai Patel (1963), Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay (1966), M.S. Swaminathan (1971), Ela Bhatt (1977), Mabelle Arole & Rajanikant Arole (1979), Pramod Karan Sethi (1981), Chandi Prasad Bhatt (1982), Pandurang Shastri Athavale (1996), Aruna Roy (2000), Rajendra Singh (2001), Sandeep Pandey (2002), Shantha Sinha (2003), Arvind Kejriwal (2006), Prakash Amte & Mandakini Amte (2008), Neelima Mishra (2011), Bezwada Wilson (2016), Thodur Madabusi Krishna (2016) and Dr Ravi Kannan R. (2023).
Journalism, Literature, and the Creative Communication Arts: Amitabha Chowdhury (1961), Satyajit Ray (1967), Sombhu Mitra (1976), Gour Kishore Ghosh (1981), Arun Shourie (1982), R. K. Laxman (1984), K. V. Subbanna (1991), Ravi Shankar (1992), Mahasweta Devi (1997), Aruna Roy (2000), Palagummi Sainath (2007) and Ravish Kumar (2019).
Peace and International Understanding: Mother Teresa (1962), Jockin Arputham (2000) and Laxminarayan Ramdas (2004),
Uncategorized: Deep Joshi (2009), Harish Hande (2011), Kulandei Francis (2011), Anshu Gupta and Sanjiv Chaturvedi (2015), Sonam Wangchuk (2018), Bharat Vatwani (2018) and Ananya Gaur (2021).
Oscar Awards:
Although there have been many nominations, only ten Indians managed to win the prestigious Oscars awards as follows:
– Bhanu Athaiya (Best Costume Design – Gandhi, 1983) – 55th Academy Awards
– Satyajit Ray (Honorary Award for Lifetime Achievement, 1992) – 64th Academy Awards
– A.R. Rahman & Gulzar (Best Original Song – ‘Jai Ho’, Slumdog Millionaire, 2008) – 81st Academy Awards
– A.R. Rahman (Best Original Score – Slumdog Millionaire, 2008) – 81st Academy Awards
– Resul Pookutty (Best Sound Mixing – Slumdog Millionaire, 2008) – 81st Academy Awards
– Kartiki Gonsalves & Guneet Monga (Best Documentary Short Subject, The Elephant Whisperers, 2023) – 95th Academy Awards
– M. M. Keeravaani (Music Composer) and Chandrabose (Lyricist) for the film RRR (Best Original Song, “Naatu Naatu”, 2023) – 95th Academy Awards
“Naatu Naatu” made history by becoming the first song from an Indian film to win the Academy Award for Best Original Song. It also won the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song in the same year (2023).
Satyajit Ray is the only Indian recipient of an Honorary Award, recognizing his lifetime achievement in filmmaking. A.R. Rahman is the only Indian to win multiple Oscars in a single year (2009) and the first to be nominated in three categories.
At the 30th Academy Awards, Mehboob Khan’s 1957 Hindi-language film Mother India was India’s first submission for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film category. As of 2023, three Indian films have been nominated for Best International Feature—Mother India, Salaam Bombay! (1988) and Lagaan (2001). It was reported that Lagaan (2001), directed by Ashutosh Gowariker lost by a single vote.
A.R. Rahman holds the record for most nominations for an Indian with five total nominations to date, followed by Ismail Merchant with four nominations (three for Best Picture and once for Live Action Short). Pandit Ravi Shankar was nominated for Best Original Score for Richard Attenborough’s biographical film Gandhi (1982).
Aga Khan Award:
The Aga Khan Award for Architecture is a prestigious international prize awarded every three years to projects that set new standards of excellence in: Contemporary Design, Social Housing, Community Development and Improvement, Restoration, Reuse and Area Conservation and Landscape Design and Improvement of the Environment. The goal of Aga Khan Award is to identify and encourage building concepts that address the needs and aspirations of Muslim communities across the world.
The award was instituted in 1977 by His Highness the Aga Khan and carries a prize money of US$ 1 million.
Six projects from India have been recognized for their excellence since the award’s inception:
- Mughal Sheraton Hotel, Agra (1978-80): This project involved the restoration and adaptive reuse of a 16th-century Mughal caravanserai into a modern hotel. It balanced the preservation of historical elements with contemporary design.
- Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India, Ahmedabad (1990-92): Designed by Bimal Hasmukh Patel, this project created an educational environment fostering innovation and entrepreneurship. It emphasized natural ventilation and passive cooling techniques.
- Aranya Community Housing, Indore (1993-95): This project by Balkrishna Doshi and the Vastu-Shilpa Foundation provided low-cost housing with a focus on community spaces and social interaction.
- Lepers Hospital, Lasur (1996-98): This project designed by Sameer Doshi offered humane and culturally sensitive care facilities for leprosy patients, promoting integration with the community.
- Slum Networking of Indore City (1996-98): This initiative aimed at upgrading living conditions in slums through improved infrastructure, sanitation, and community participation.
- Vidhan Bhavan, Bhopal (1996-98): This state legislative assembly building by Charles Correa showcased sustainable design principles and incorporated traditional Indian architectural elements.
Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters:
“Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters” or “Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres” is a prestigious honour bestowed by the French Ministry of Culture to individuals who have made significant contributions to the field of arts and literature in France or through the promotion of French culture worldwide.
Some of the Indian recipients of this Award include:
2014 – Rahul Mishra (Fashion Designer)
2021 – Aditi Maheshwari (Publisher)
2023 – Aruna Sairam (Carnatic vocalist, composer and collaborator)