BENGALURU: The countdown has begun for Varshada Kannadiga awards, the annual signature event of News18 Kannada to be held next week. As a precursor to the event, a jury meet was held on 13 March with members comprising the who’s who of Bangalore. Every year, a jury is constituted and headed by an eminent personality. This year, the jury was chaired by the esteemed Karnataka high court former justice H N Nagamohan Das.

The jury put together had a good mix of seven eminent people from different sectors. From law enforcement, to politics, art and culture, entertainment, sports and corporate, the panel was well represented from all sectors.

The esteemed jury members were:

Prof. Doddarange Gowda, poet & lyricist.

R Ashok, revenue minister – government of Karnataka

Sudharani, Sandalwood actress

Reena Suvarna, KAS

V R Raghunath, Hockey Olympian

Sneha Rakesh, entrepreneur

The awards are divided into eight categories -- literature, entertainment, public service, business, science and technology, sports. The other two categories are the Varshada Kannadiga and Lifetime Achievement award. The names were shortlisted looking at people who have performed extremely well during the year, some unrecognized and extraordinary feats of ordinary people. Under the supervision of  News18 Kannada editor Siddappa Kaloji, the names were submitted by the editorial staff, and nominations from the public. These names were filtered, by the editorial and five entries were placed in front of the jury for final selection.

The roundtable saw a good amount of humour, active discussions, related anecdotes, varied opinions about nominees and their contributions – before finally reaching a consensus.

The nominees and the winners will be declared on 26 March 2021, Friday, at J W Mariott with a grand, star studded presentation ceremony.