Four eminent personalities across India to grace the occasion

Madhav Rao Leadership Awards have been instituted to award individuals who have excelled in their working field and contribution to the society. This year the awards will be presented by Shri. Jyotiraditya Raje Scindia and Shri Sriprakash Jaiswal (Minister of State of Coal, Statistics and Programme Implementation) on the 21st November, 2009 at the prestigious Merchant Chamber Hall, Civil Lines, Kanpur

The Madhavrao Scindia Leadership Awards 2009 are awarded in the following categories;

Entrepreneur of the year- Mr. Vineet Mittal, MD, Welspun Energy
Best Sportsman Mr. Harbhajan Singh
Outstanding performance in cinema Mr. Farhan Akhtar
Best Actor in a Supporting Role Ms. Divya Dutta
Actress Young Achiever - Genelia Dsouza

All of them will be gracing the city of Kanpur with their presence on the 21st of November, 2009. They would also be addressing a joint press briefing chaired by UP Congress Committee chairperson Mr. Pradeep Mishra and Organiser Shri Mant Madhav Rao Scindhia Award Samaroh

The UP congress committee will salute the leaders whose relentless pursuit of excellence has fuelled India‘s journey to the forefront of global leadership.

ABOUT THE AWARDS

Madhavrao Scindhia Leadership Awards have been instituted to award individuals who have excelled in their working field and contribution to the society. These awards not only honour the men and women who stand at the forefront of the world but also the talented people they lead. The awards promise to acknowledge the best, the brightest and the most dynamic Indians who have emerged leaders in their respective field and are leading India in her journey toward being a global superpower.

This year, UP congress committee will salute the leaders whose relentless pursuit of excellence has fuelled India‘s journey to the forefront of global leadership. The award ceremony will be held on 21st Nov 2009 in Kanpur where multiple cabinet ministers will grace the occasion to encourage people to surge ahead and bring glory to our country.

Awardees Profile

Mr. Vineet Mittal, MD, Welspun Energy

Awarded- The Entrepreneur of the Year Award

For Vineet Mittal, his choice of work, projects and ventures has always been determined by one motive: “To change the social fabric of India.” In that true intention itself, the entrepreneur‘s choices have made him stand out amongst his peers. From setting up and running one of India‘s biggest BPO in India before they became the buzzword, to now planning to light more than just a bulb in every village, Vineet Mittal‘s story is one of great courage and conviction.

Mr. Mittal is at the helm of Welspun Energy, the infrastructure arm of the Rs.15,000 crore Welspun Group. The 33 year old Vineet has put together an ambitious plan of setting up large thermal, hydro and solar power projects all across the country. His philosophy is simple: When you bring education or electricity into a town or a village, you immediately change its economic profile.

Breaking away from family business, to finish his engineering from NIT and then working with VSNL and consulting with IT biggies like Microsoft, CISCO

and AOL, Vineet set up his own outsourcing venture in 2000. Understanding the need to think local and be global, Vineet was one of the first few people in the country to raise private equity funding from ICICI ventures. Stream became one of the big names in the outsourcing business having an impressive roster of clients like HP, Adobe, Microsoft and others.

An Alumnus of Harvard Business School, Vineet is truly a global business leader who has the ability to go where men fear to tread.

Mr.Harbhajan Singh- Best Sportsman

Harbhajan made his Test and One Day International (ODI) debuts in early 1998. In the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series victory over Australia, Harbhajan established himself as the team's leading spinner by taking 32 wickets, becoming the first Indian bowler to take a hat trick in Test cricket.

A player of passion, with talent to match, Harbhajan Singh is India's most successful offspin bowler. Bowling with a windmilling, whiplash action, remodelled after he was reported for throwing, he exercises great command over the ball, has the ability to vary his length and pace, and can turn it the other way too. His main wicket-taking ball, however, is the one that climbs wickedly on the unsuspecting batsman from a good length, forcing him to alter his stroke at the last second. In March 2001, it proved too much for the all-conquering Australians, as Harbhajan collected 32 wickets in three Tests, including the first Test hat-trick by an Indian, while none of his team-mates managed more than three. He remains an irresistible force on home pitches where he can be unplayable once he manages an opening. He can be occasionally explosive with the bat and has scored 1000 runs. At 27, he remains the prime candidate to carry on India's rich legacy in spin after the retirement of Anil Kumble.

He was conferred the Padma Shri, India's fourth highest civilian honor, in 2009.

Mr. Farhan Akhtar- Outstanding performance in cinema

Farhan Akhtar started his career by working as an apprentice with cinematographer-director, Manmohan Singh at age 17, for films like Lamhe (1991); before going on to assist director, Pankaj Parashar in film Himalayputra (1997), followed by working in a television production house for three years, doing various jobs.

He made his writing and directorial debut in Hindi cinema with the 2001-hit, Dil Chahta Hai, produced by Excel Entertainment Pvt. Ltd., a production company he co-established along with Ritesh Sidwani in 1999. It was a critical and commercial success, especially popular among the younger generation. It earned quite a few nominations at various award shows, including for Best Screenplay, Direction and Film. It won that year's National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi.

In 2008, Farhan made his acting debut in Rock On!!. It was critically acclaimed as well as a box office hit, done exceptionally well particularly in the metros. He also appeared as the male lead in his sister Zoya's directorial debut, Luck By Chance. He is also going to appear in three upcoming films: Kartik calling kartik, Dhruv (Indian film) and Gulel (his only acting venture which is not his production too).

Ms. Divya Dutta- Best Actor in Supporting Role

Actress Divya Dutta, first hit the headlines when she dubbed for actress Lisa Ray in Vikram Bhatt's Kasoor in 2001. Born in September 1977, this actress who hails from Ludhiana has been around for quite a while. She is now recognized as an actress of repute.

The film which catapulted her to fame because of her acting skills was Veer Zaara (2004) for which she won the Zee Cine Award For Best Actor in a supporting role, while being nominated by Filmfare in the same category for the film. Her list of Hindi films include the likes of LOC Kargil, Baghbaan, U Me Aur Hum, Umrao Jaan, Kasoor, Jogger's Park, Train To Pakistan and Sur: The Melody Of Life. Besides Hindi, the actress has won a lot of critical acclaim for her roles in Punjabi films like Shaheed Mohabbat, Des Hoya Pardes and Waris Shah: Ishq Da Waaris. Besides, movies, she has also enjoyed a good stint on television. Her most recent appearance was as Shanno in Shanno Ki Shaadi.

Divya' forthcoming films include, Dilli 6 and Paani Puri. She was last seen in Shyam Benegal's comdedy, Welcome To Sajjanpur.