Shortlist announced for Asian Achievers Awards 2026, Ustad Rafaqat Ali Khan and Rishi Rich performing

LONDON, 04 AUGUST 2026: The shortlist for the 24th Asian Achievers Awards, the UK’s most prominent and longstanding celebration of British Asian achievement across multiple fields, is out. This year’s Awards will take place on Friday 18 September 2026 at the prestigious London Hilton on Park Lane. Nearly 600 guests include celebrities, business leaders and global stars. Over the last few editions, the net worth of the room has consistently been over £35 billion.

More than 500 nominations were received across all the categories, which the judges spent the last month narrowing down to a deserving shortlist. The categories include: Arts and Culture, Business Person of the Year, Community Service, Entrepreneur of the Year, Lifetime Achievement Award, Media, Professional of the Year, Sports Personality of the Year and Woman of the Year.

Judges were chosen to represent a wide cross-section of society across public service, business, entrepreneurship and the media. They include Avnish Goyal CBE (Chairman, Hallmark Care Homes), Caroline Rassell (CEO, Parkinson’s UK), Raj Baddhan (CEO, Lyca Radio), Rajesh Agrawal (Founder & CEO, Fairgrowth Group), Rishini Weeraratne (Editor, The Sun (Daily Mirror, Sri Lanka)) and Simon Arora (Former CEO, B&M Retail).

This year’s shortlist reflects the wide range of talent right across the South Asian community, including US PGA Championship winner Aaron Rai, Pakistani women’s football team player Mariam Mahmood, leading property developer and entrepreneur Kamal Pankhania, President of King’s College London Prof Shitij Kapur, iconic restauranteurs Des Gunawardena, Karan Gokani, Subodh Joshi and Sujay Sohani, CEO of sports charity London Tigers Mesba Ahmed MBE, model Neelam Gill and human rights champion Prof Sunita Toor.

Speaking about this year’s programme, Pratik Dattani, Managing Director of EPG, says: “We received one of the strongest set of submissions we’ve ever had at this year’s Asian Achievers Awards. Judges looked for examples of leadership, impact and contribution to the community. At a time when Britain is facing a continued cost-of-living crisis, frequent changes in government and an anti-immigrant sentiment, our Awards showcase the very best of what our community has to offer. They showcase inspiration, innovation and resilience.”

The night will once again be hosted by actor Nitin Ganatra OBE. Indian pioneer of Asian-R&B fusion Rishi Rich will be joined on stage by Pakistan’s classical music royalty Ustad Rafaqat Ali Khan – the voice behind Krrish, Dhokha and unforgettable Coke Studios moments. The BBC’s Man Like Mobeen star Tez Ilyas will be returning once more for a stand-up comedy performance.

The charity partner for the event is Pardada Pardadi, an NGO that aims to socially uplift and economically empower girls and women in Uttar Pradesh in India through education, health and hygiene, community development and economic empowerment.

Achievement in Art and Culture

• Anjana Vasan, BAFTA award-winning theatre and TV actress
• Neelam Gill, Model
• Nikita Pathakji, Winner, Great British Menu
• Pravesh Kumar MBE, Founder and CEO, Rifco Theatre
• Saurav Dutt, Author

Achievement in Community Service

• Dr Pam Gosal MBE, Former MSP and Deputy Chair, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
• Mesba Ahmed MBE, CEO, London Tigers
• Nazim Ali, Charity Fundraiser, Ramadan Runner
• Sujan Katuwal MBE, Founder, Panas Gurkha Restaurant

Achievement in Media         

• Tommy Nagra, Former Director of Content, BBC Children in Need
• Aaron Paul, Football Commentator
• Balvinder Singh Sanghera, Founder and CEO, runVT
• Sarita Sabharwal, Presenter, LycaRadio

Achievement in Sports

• Aaron Rai, Golfer, US PGA Championship Winner
• Dr Zafar Iqbal, Former Medical Director, Arsenal FC
• Mariam Mahmood, Footballer, Pakistan Women’s National Team, Wrexham AFC Women
• Sanjeev Sharma, Owner and Director, Southall Football Club

Business Person of the Year

• Abbas Esufally, Deputy Chairman, Hemas Holdings plc
• Des Gunawardena, Founder, D3 Collective Limited
• Kamal Pankhania, CEO, Westcombe Group
• Priyanjith Weerasooria, Group MD, FINCO Holdings
• Rajiv Batra, Executive Chairman, Batra Group

Entrepreneur of the Year

• Karan Gokani, Co-Founder, Hoppers
• Nilofar Jaques, Founder, Anayah Jewellery
• Rhim Shah, CEO, Arva AI
• Roheel Ahmad, CEO, Forsyth Barnes
• Sanjeet Manek, Founder, Sandea Wholesale
• Subodh Joshi and Sujay Sohani, Co-Founders, Shree Krishna Vada Pav

Lifetime Achievement Award

Announced on the night

Professional of the Year

• Chaitanya Tatineni, CEO, Curium Biopharma
• Fezaa Sheikh, Partner, Kingsley Wood
• Manthi Wickramasooriya, Partner, Quinn Emanuel
• Prof Shitij Kapur, Vice Chancellor and President, King’s College London
• Rushanka Amrutkar FRAS, Data Governance and Analytics, Environment Agency

Woman of the Year

• Dipna Anand, Chef, Author and Culinary Instructor
• Farzana Baduel, Co-Founder and CEO, Curzon PR
• Prity Somani, Co-Founder and Director, Kara Healthcare
• Prof Sunita Toor, Prof, Human Rights and Gender, University of Sheffield
• Venya Wijegunerwardene, Chief Strategy Officer, Spark Foundry UK

To find out more about the AAA and to book your ticket, visit asianachieversawards.com or call 020 7993 6851.