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MUMBAI: From box-office blockbusters to viral videos and chart-topping music, the race for recognition is bringing together some of India’s most talked-about entertainers. CNN-News18 has announced the nominees in the Entertainment and Youth Icon categories for the 16th edition of its flagship awards, Indian of the Year 2026, with public voting now open.
The awards platform recognises Indians whose achievements have made an impact across the country and beyond. This year’s nominations span film, music, digital entertainment and emerging talent, bringing established names alongside creators and performers who have built audiences through newer formats.
In the Entertainment category, actor-filmmaker Dhanush, singer Shreya Ghoshal, filmmaker Vishal Chaturvedi, director Imtiaz Ali and actor Jim Sarbh feature on the nominee list. Their cited achievements range from National Film Awards recognition and live music releases to an unexpected box-office success and a streaming series that attracted millions of viewers.
Dhanush enters the nominations after a notable year across acting and direction. At the 72nd National Film Awards, Raayan was named Best Tamil Film, while Dhanush received a Special Mention for his performance in Captain Miller. According to the announcement, the recognition marked his first National Award as a director and his third as an actor, adding another milestone to a career that spans multiple roles in filmmaking.
Shreya Ghoshal’s nomination reflects her continuing presence in Indian music. In March 2026, she released The All Hearts Tour – Live, described in the announcement as the first live album by an Indian female artiste in three decades. She also won the Screen Award for Best Playback Singer (Female) for the title track of Saiyaara, adding another accolade to her playback singing career.
Filmmaker Vishal Chaturvedi has been nominated for Hanuman Ansh, a devotional drama that became an unexpected box-office story. The film crossed Rs 200 crore in India despite being made on a reported budget of around Rs 2 crore. Chaturvedi waived his directing fee and completed the project at half its originally planned budget after investors pulled out, according to the announcement. The film’s reported performance has made it one of the year’s more striking examples of a low-budget production finding a substantial audience.
Imtiaz Ali is also in the running for Main Vaapas Aaunga, which followed an audience-first strategy and completed a 50-day theatrical run. The film recorded a worldwide gross of around Rs 99 crore and entered Netflix’s global Top 10 for non-English films. Its nomination places the focus on a release that combined a sustained cinema run with subsequent international streaming visibility.
Actor Jim Sarbh rounds out the Entertainment nominees listed in the announcement. His portrayal of Xerxes Desai in Made in India: A Titan Story received critical acclaim, while the series recorded 41.8 million unique viewers in its first three weeks on Amazon MX Player. The figures underline the scale of the series’ early audience, adding a streaming success to a category that also recognises theatrical films and music.
The Youth Icon category turns the spotlight towards emerging voices making their mark across digital platforms, cinema and music. The nominees are Samay Raina, Mamitha Baiju, Sai Abhyankkar, Daiaphi Lamare, known as Reble, and Dharna Durga.
Comedian and digital creator Samay Raina leads the category after the return of India’s Got Latent for a second season, which featured a first-of-its-kind simulcast on YouTube and Netflix India. A subsequent episode crossed 61 million views on YouTube, demonstrating the programme’s ability to attract a substantial online audience.
Raina also received attention for disability-awareness and fundraising efforts undertaken with his co-creators. In August, the Supreme Court took note of those efforts while quashing FIRs related to an earlier controversy surrounding the show. His nomination therefore comes against a backdrop that includes both the reach of digital entertainment and the public debate that can accompany it.
Actor Mamitha Baiju is nominated after a strong year at the box office. The announcement describes her as the first South Indian actress and only the third Indian actress overall, after Deepika Padukone and Alia Bhatt, to feature in three films crossing Rs 200 crore worldwide in a single calendar year. The achievement places her among the performers whose films have reached audiences at scale across the Indian market.
Music also features prominently in the Youth Icon nominations through Sai Abhyankkar. His breakthrough singles have crossed a combined 600 million YouTube views, and he was announced as the composer for Suriya’s upcoming project with Hombale Films. The nomination recognises a young musician whose online audience is being complemented by opportunities in film music.
Daiaphi Lamare, who performs as Reble, is nominated for bringing the musical identity of Northeast India to a wider audience through her multilingual rap contributions to Dhurandhar. Her inclusion adds a regional and multilingual dimension to a category spanning different forms of entertainment and creative expression.
Dharna Durga completes the Youth Icon list after making her acting debut in Suresh Triveni’s Netflix film Maa Behen. The film reached No. 2 on Netflix’s Global Top 10 Non-English Films, giving the debutant international streaming visibility and placing her among the emerging performers recognised this year.
The two categories reflect the breadth of India’s entertainment landscape, where recognition can come through theatrical performance, music releases, streaming audiences or creator-led formats. While established stars bring years of work and industry recognition, the Youth Icon nominees represent a generation building careers across platforms where audience engagement can quickly translate into wider opportunities.
Public voting for CNN-News18 Indian of the Year 2026 is now open through the awards website at https://www.news18features.com/indianoftheyear/. The 16th edition is presented by RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group, with JK Tyre and Reliance Industries Limited as Associate Partners.
With nominations spanning National Award recognition, films crossing Rs 200 crore, music releases, 600 million YouTube views and streaming audiences measured in tens of millions, this year’s shortlist brings together different measures of achievement. The final outcome will depend on the awards process, with the public now able to participate in the race to recognise the year’s standout names across entertainment and youth culture.
