Singapore, 28 March 2021 – It was a night of celebrations at the largest local Indian entertainment event, Pradhana Vizha 2021, where 31 awards were conferred to the most deserving of talents and productions. Held last evening (Saturday, 27 March) at The Theatre at Mediacorp, the 17th edition of the awards show paid tribute to the pursuit of artistic excellence as well as the power of the arts to bring the community together.
The night launched into full gear with a medley of retro-style song and dance by celebrities Ebi Shankara, Guna, Pavitra Renuka, Dhurgashini, Pavithra Nair, Aneetha, Mark Sara and Suthashini, together with local dance troupe, Rameshwara. Viewers were also treated to melodic Acapella and instrumental pieces as well as a dazzling performance by Vasantham’s veteran artistes, Suriamoorthy, Vijaydran, Gunaselvam, Prasanna and Vikneswari.
The biggest award winner this year was Mediacorp’s Eaglevision, with its programmes and nominees bagging a total of seven wins in the programme categories for Best Entertainment Series, Best Entertainment Special (Single) and Best Drama; as well as in the performance and creative categories for Best Host (Entertainment), Best Direction (Other Genres), Best Original Screenplay, and Best Videography (Drama). Presented for the first time ever in Pradhana Vizha’s history to honour the best in local Indian radio, the Best Radio Programme award was conferred on Mediacorp’s Oli 968 for Uravugal Thodarkathi by Gunalan Morgan.
Jaya Ganesh Isuran and Manjari reigned in the popularity categories as they were named the Most Popular Male and Female Artiste respectively in these highly contested awards.
A special Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Mr P Krishnan, a highly distinguished figure in the local Indian entertainment scene. Mr K Shanmugam, Minister for Home Affairs and Minister for Law, presented the award to Mr P Krishnan in an exclusive pre-recorded session. Mr P Krishan was a radio producer and presenter for Radio Singapore. His long and illustrious career spanned various aspects of broadcasting, from news reading to disk-jockeying, acting, singing, and even directing and producing notable content. He had also previously received many prestigious awards, both local and international, in recognition of his contribution to Tamil literature and Tamil language, including the Cultural Medallion in 2008.
Please refer to Annex A for the full list of winners.
Angeline Poh, Chief Customer & Corporate Development Officer, Mediacorp, said: "We are delighted to celebrate the achievements of the artistes and media professionals at this year’s Pradhana Vizha. All the nominees have demonstrated passion for their craft and commitment to achieving excellence. I hope that they will continue creating great content that connects with and inspires the community. Congratulations to all award recipients!"
Fans who wish to catch the show can do so on meWATCH and Mediacorp Entertainment on YouTube.
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Media contact
Natasya Ismail
Communications Associate
Mediacorp Pte Ltd
Natasya.ismail@mediacorp.com.sg
About Mediacorp
Mediacorp is Singapore’s national media network and largest content creator. Its purpose is to create engaging and trusted content, as well as to connect communities and inspire people. Mediacorp engages over three million people in Singapore daily across four languages on its digital platforms including meWATCH, meLISTEN and CNA.asia, six TV channels and 11 radio stations. Beyond Singapore, Mediacorp also has a growing international audience through CNA and content distributed across markets.
With a focus on nurturing talent and growing the sector, the company is committed to investing in nation-wide initiatives like Star Search, Anugerah, Yaar Antha Star and SPOP, commissioning a wide variety of work from local content creators, and collaborating with institutes of higher learning. As Singapore’s first local Multi-Channel Network in partnership with YouTube, Mediacorp is also committed to developing a network of digital content creators.
For advertisers, Mediacorp has partnered industry-leading brands like ESPN, Mothership, Popcorn, Singapore Tatler, theAsianparent, VICE, YouTube and 99.co to form the Mediacorp Digital Network in offering more effective content-driven solutions.
Mediacorp is the recipient of industry accolades including New York Festivals, World Media Festivals, PromaxBDA (World and Asia) and Asian Academy Creative Awards. For more information, please visit mediacorp.sg
Annex A – Pradhana Vizha 2021 Winners’ List
Performance categories
Award Category | Winner | Series | Production House |
---|---|---|---|
Best Actor in a Leading Role - Drama Series | MATHIALAGAN | ROWTHIRAM | PERFECTIMAGE000 ENTERTAINMENT PTE LTD |
Best Actress in a Leading Role - Drama Series | ESWARI GUNASAGAR | KALABA KADHALA | STARDUST STORY PTE LTD |
Best Actor in a Supporting Role - Drama Series | VARMAN CHANDRA MOHAN | ROMEO & JULIET | BLUE RIVER PICTURES PTE LTD |
Best Actress in a Supporting Role - Drama Series | MANJARI | BOMMALATAM | FRAMES ENTERTAINMENT PTE LTD |
Best Actor/Actress in a Negative Role - Drama Series | STEPHEN ZECHARIAH | AVATHAARAM | 360 ENTERTAINMENT PTE LTD |
Best Actor/Actress in a Comedy Role - Drama Series | JAYAGANESH ISURAN | ADUKKU VEETTU ANNASAMY | COSMIC ULTIMA PICTURES |
Best New Comer - Drama Series | VERONICA SHAW | YAAR 2 | VIOLET TALES PTE LTD |
Best Host - Entertainment | SARAVANAN AYYAVOO | AMARKALA DEEPAVALI 2019 | EAGLEVISION, MEDIACORP PTE LTD |
Best Host – Info | UDAYA SOUNDARI | UDAYAM 2 | PERFECTIMAGE000 ENTERTAINMENT PTE LTD |
Shining Star | HARJEET | NEO | SPECTRAA PRODUCTIONS |
Best Original Singer | PAVITHRA SHREEDHARAN NAIR | SINGA AIRLINES (KADHAL VARAM) | TANTRA INCORPORATION |
Programme categories
Award Category | Winner | Production House |
---|---|---|
Best Drama Series | UYIRE | EAGLEVISION, MEDIACORP PTE LTD |
Best Entertainment Series | MUSIC JUNCTION | EAGLEVISION, MEDIACORP PTE LTD |
Best Entertainment Special (Single) | AMARKALA DEEPAVALI 2019 | EAGLEVISION, MEDIACORP PTE LTD |
Best Info-Ed/Docu-Drama Series | ORU MANITHANIN KATHAI | NUFFIELD MEDIA PTE LTD |
Best Infotainment/Lifestyle Series | KANAVU MEIPADA SEASON 2 | VERITE PRODUCTIONS |
Best Reality/Gameshow Series | SAVAAL SINGAPORE S6 | LIVE ACTION PTE LTD |
Best Talkshow | NERUKKU NAER S2 | THEMEDIA PTE LTD |
Best Children's Series | MY DEAR KUDUMBAM RETURNS | WHY NOT US? PTE LTD |
Best Radio Programme | URAVUGAL THODARKATHAI BY GUNALAN MORGAN | MEDIACORP OLI968 |
Creative categories
Award Category | Winner | Series | Production House |
---|---|---|---|
Best Direction (Drama) | VEL MURUGAN | ROWTHIRAM | PERFECTIMAGE00 ENTERTAINMENT PTE LTD |
Best Direction (Other Genres) | ANURATHA KANDERAJU | AMARKALA DEEPAVALI 2018 | EAGLEVISION, MEDIACORP PTE LTD |
Best Original Screenplay | KUMARAN SUNDRAM & RAJA TAMILMARAN | ARIVAAN | EAGLEVISION, MEDIACORP PTE LTD |
Best Scripting (Drama) | TT DHAVAMANI | GURU PAARVAI S4 | BLUE RIVER PICTURES PTE LTD |
Best Scripting (Other Genres) | T.N.SANJEEVI | RAYIL SNEHAM S4 | SILVER SCREEN INTERNATIONAL PTE LTD |
Best Videography (Drama) | GOPAL KANDASAMY | ARIVAAN | EAGLEVISION, MEDIACORP PTE LTD |
Best Original Track | SHABIR (COMPOSER) & JAYA RATHAKRISHNAN (LYRICIST) | KALABA KADHALA (TITLE SONG) | STARDUST STORY PTE LTD |
Popular Awards
Award Category | Winner |
---|---|
Most Popular Programme | Ms V Supreme 2019 (Violet Tales Pte Ltd) |
Most Popular Male Personality | Jaya Ganesh Isuran |
Most Popular Female Personality | Manjari |
Lifetime Achievement Award
Award Category | Winner |
---|---|
Lifetime Achievement Award | Mr P Krishnan |