Inspirational journalists and broadcasters were honoured at the Asian Media Awards at the Hilton Manchester Deansgate on Friday (25 October).
The awards celebrate achievements in a range of categories in TV, radio, stage, online and creative media.
The ceremony is supported by the University of Salford and took place at a packed venue at the Hilton Manchester Deansgate.
The awards feature work from national and regional media organisations as well as smaller independent production teams and freelance media professionals.
This year’s event was hosted by Diversity and Inclusion Reporter at Sky Sports News Miriam Walker-Khan. Miriam kindly stepped in to host the event after colleague Bela Shah was unable to present due to illness.
As well as panel members and event partners, awards on the night were presented by NHS doctor and author Amir Khan, acclaimed actress Amy-Leigh Hickman, football referee Sunny Gill Singh, social media star and comedian Shabaz Ali, model Zaf Shabir and writer and actor Ameet Chana.
The night saw presenter, broadcaster and podcaster, Sangita Myska give an impassioned speech after being named the 2024 Media Personality of the Year.
Sangita has been instrumental in helping to shed a light on a range of issues and has been at the forefront of tackling prejudice and bigotry wherever she has seen it.
Her forensic and even-handed approach to interviewing politicians and government officials coupled with her warm, conversational style with the public has won her a legion of loyal fans.
Speaking on stage Sangita said: “I would like to thank my friends, family and fantastic colleagues.
“You have seen me through many years in this industry where it is still a challenge to be a woman and particularly a woman of colour.
“Let us not underestimate how much further we have to go to break barriers.”
She added: “I would also like to take this opportunity to thank the listeners and viewers who have backed me over the years but came out in full force this year, in the most unexpected, unplanned and humbling way possible.”
She said she had taken time away to think about the state of journalism and went on to praise the efforts of the ‘unsung heroes’ in journalism who worked often on relatively low pay and temporary contracts.
She went on to speak about how deep-seated mistrust had been allowed to develop between parts the UK’s legacy media and audiences.
“Received wisdom about how we report certain stories is failing. The ‘both siding’ of narratives when the weight of evidence clearly falls on one side is causing a deep-seated mistrust between journalists and the general public.
“All hope is not lost. There is a cure. It is simple, though not always easy.
“That cure is to maintain integrity in journalism. That means having the courage to speak the truth to power whether that’s inside or outside your news organisation.
“Not just when it is convenient or wins you social media likes.”
She added: “Integrity means speaking truth to power when it might cost you something. Most likely (albeit temporarily) social, professional or financial capital.”
Sangita was presented the final and biggest honour of the night by stem cell transplant recipient Anie Hussain, who is working to create more awareness of the process within the Asian community. Anie was joined by AMA panel member Tommy Nagra.
Presenter, singer and actress, Ayshea Brough who helped to launch some of the biggest pop bands of the seventies on her show ‘Lift Off with Ayshea’ was honoured with the Outstanding Contribution to Media award.
Ayshea’s inspirational career, which many in the room were not aware of, has spanned more than six decades during which time she has appeared in a host of TV, film and stage roles.
‘Lift Off with Ayesha’ had a significant influence on the pop music industry, debuting acts that often went on to later success, most notably David Bowie. It also featured the likes of Wizzard, The Bay City Rollers, The Sweet, Black Sabbath, Slade and 10cc.
In the journalist categories Deputy Political Editor at ITN ITV News, Anushka Asthana was named Manchester Metropolitan University Journalist of the Year. Anushka is a political journalist with more than 20 years of experience, bringing a unique perspective to Westminster reporting.
She said: “When I first joined the political lobby there were no brown faces at all.
“It is our community that has lifted me up every step of the way.
“At ITV News and now at ITN. Massive shout out to the Empower Network for supporting all of us.
“Thank you to all my amazing producers and colleagues. Thank you to mum and dad.
“I lost my brother very young who was bipolar, and I would like to dedicate this award to him.”
The Best Investigation award for 2024 went to Sudiksha: ‘Condemned to Die in Secret’ by Inderdeep Bains for The Daily Mail. Inderdeep aimed to highlight the case of Sudiksha Thirumalesh, a teenager who died while locked in a legal battle with the NHS.
The Outstanding Young Journalist award went to Data Journalist at Sky News Saywah Mahmood. Saywah has produced a range of impactful stories from across the world.
Her work sees her uncovering compelling stories through forensic analysis.
She told the audience: “I would like to thank my mum and dad who deal with me being very obsessed with my work. I really like what I do, and I enjoy what I do.
“It is really nice to be recognised for my work.”
Boxing Reporter at BBC Sport, Kal Sajad won the Sports Journalist of the Year award. Kal has covered some major title fights in the past year.
Kal Sajad praised fellow nominees including host Miriam Walker-Khan. He said: “When you look at some of the talent and some of the other sports journalists, I feel like I am experiencing imposter syndrome.
“I just love boxing. I like talking about boxing. I like writing about boxing. To all those teachers that said fighting will get you nowhere…”
The Regional Journalist of the Year award went to Sophia Seth of BBC South.
Sophia Seth said: “Thanks so much the Asian Media Awards. So many great nominees. I was thrilled I was going to be up against so many great people.
“Just to be in be in a room of so many talented people is amazing.
“For me being a journalist has been about sharing those untold stories.
“Being based in the south you have to find those people that want to tell their stories.
“For me I have tried to reach out to so many communities in the years I have been there.”
Disabled Scuba Diving Duo, a short series of reports on BBC North West by Mohammed Patel won the Report of the Year honour. Mohammed, who is blind, pitched, produced, contributed to and edited this series about the plight of a disabled scuba diving duo. himself and a paraplegic athlete, Shaun.
Hollyoaks star Harvey Virdi was honoured with the Sophiya Haque Services to British Television, Film & Theatre award.
In a career spanning three decades Harvey has been a constant feature in the some of the UK’s most favourite films, dramas and soaps. She has appeared in a whole host of theatre productions.
Speaking on the changes she had seen in the past thirty years she said: “Change has been slow but creative people have always been chipping away. Often creating work rather than waiting for it to come their way. And now, it’s good to see strong South Asian characters on screen and stage.
“Not just actors, but writers, directors and designers all contributing to sharing our stories. There are more and more talented South Asian creatives entering the business and it’s a joyous thing.”
In theatre, the Best Stage Production went to Blue Mist, which follows the lives of three young men who meet in a shisha lounge and delve into everything from politics and religion to British identity and heritage.
Deaf actor, Nadia Nadarajah, won the Outstanding Stage Performance award for her role as Cleopatra for Antony and Cleopatra at The Globe. The bilingual production was performed in two languages: British Sign Language (BSL) and Spoken English.
The Best Newcomer Award went to Talia Palamathanan. As well as appearing in a number of theatre productions Talia has had a keen interest in wanting to help improve diversity on the stage.
Talia is currently starring as Jennifer Parker in West End’s Back to the Future. Most recently, Talia portrayed the role of Pritti Pasha and the Dance Captain in the hit musical ‘Everybody’s Talking about Jamie’.
In the TV categories the coveted Best Programme / Show award went to Candour Productions – The Push: Murder on the Cliff.
With unprecedented access to court proceedings the two-part series details the inside story into the murder trial following the death Fawziyah Javed in Edinburgh.
Mawaan Rizwan was named the Best TV Character for his role as Jamma in Juice, a British comedy series created by and starring Mawaan for BBC Three.
Ustav Plus were named TV Channel of the Year.
The pioneering efforts of Dr Shani Dhanda who has been a driving force for diversity were recognised at the ceremony with the Diversity In Media award. The award was presented by Journalist Um-E-Aymen Babar.
As the only visibly disabled South Asian woman working on screen and behind the scenes, she has broken down barriers and amplified the voices of marginalised communities and beyond.
Shani Dhanda said: “This is my first time attending and I am honoured to be awarded.
“The reason I entered the media industry is because I wanted to be part of the change that I wanted to see in society.
“I have only seen four disabled people of colour on my screen. I didn’t say South Asian because if I said South Asian it would probably be one and that does not include me.
“I got sick and tired of being told we are underrepresented. We are not underrepresented; we are over excluded.”
The Best Video Channel award went to British YouTuber Arun Maini, better known as Mrwhosetheboss. The channel has gained global acclaim as the authority on smartphones and tech gadgets.
His videos have garnered millions of views across the world, with an astronomical 19.8m subscribers on YouTube, 2m followers on Instagram and a further 2m on TikTok.
The World Halal Food Festival won the Best Live Event honour, and the Creative Media award went to London’s legendary Soho Theatre which has been working with artists of South Asian heritage from across the world.
The initiative sees the next generation of talented comedians take to the stage at a range of packed-out venues.
The Media Agency of the Year award went to Media House Global.
In the radio categories, Paul Shah picked up his first AMA for Best Radio Show. Paul has been in the industry for nearly 25 years.
Seasoned journalist and broadcaster Asad Ahmad of BBC London was named Radio Presenter of the year.
The radio station of the year honour went to the team from Lyca Radio which has expanded its services by launching in two new regions in the past year.
The Best Podcast award went to Instinct Productions’ A Muslim & A Jew Go There which is hosted by comedian David Baddiel and politician Sayeeda Warsi and explores the week’s biggest headlines.
The podcast has aimed to look into the many facets of racism and prejudice in the UK and aims to tackle tropes and stereotypes through debate.
The Best Blog / Website honour went to The Curious Pixie, run by Sima Sthanakiya who aims to celebrate underrated destinations and hidden gems to help travellers get off the beaten track and journey beyond the familiar tourist trails.
This year’s Asian Media Awards winners were announced at the Hilton Manchester Deansgate on Friday October 25.
Previous recipients of an Asian Media Award include Krishnan Guru-Murthy, Waris Hussein, Art Malik, Mehdi Hasan, Nina Wadia, Anita Rani, Shobna Gulati, Faisal Islam, Kulvinder Ghir, Adil Ray, Lisa Aziz, Meera Syal, Sanjeev Bhaskar, Tina Daheley & Mihir Bose.
The University of Salford are Premier Partners to the Asian Media Awards.
Partners to the awards include ITV, EssenceMediacom, Reach PLC, Women In Journalism & Lancashire Mind.
The awards are also supported by Manchester Metropolitan University, AMT Lawyers, DKR Accountants, Opus Broadband, Janan, Hilton Manchester Deansgate, Fritz AV, Payal Events & Cleartwo.
