Pravin Masalewale Trust to Bestow ‘Suhana Kamal Lifetime Achievement Award’ To Arnavaz Damania

Pune, 22nd August 2024: The Pravin Masalewale Trust will bestow the ‘Suhana Kamal Lifetime Achievement Award’ to Arnavaz Damania, a distinguished Social Worker, and former national hockey player. Vishal Chordia, Trustee of Pravin Masalewale Trust, made this announcement at a press conference held today at Patrakar Sangh. Vandana Chavan, Chairperson of the Suhana Kamal Award Committee and former Member of Parliament, and Prithviraj Ghorpade were present on the occasion.

Speaking about the various award lineup for this year, Vishal Chordia said, “In addition to the Lifetime Achievement Award, this year’s ‘Suhana Kamal Service Award’ will be presented to Sister Lucy Kurien, founder of Maher Ashram, the ‘Suhana Kamal Entrepreneurship Award’ will be conferred upon Komal Wagaskar of Artemis Tech Pvt. Ltd while Snehal and Devanand Londhe of Payod Industries from Sangli will be decorated with the ‘Suhana Kamal Couple Entrepreneurship Award’.

Detailing out the award function, Vandana Chavhan said, “The award ceremony will take place on Thursday, 29th August 2024 at 5:00pm at the Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru Cultural Hall on Ghole Road. The awards will be presented at the hands of Padma Bhushan Dr S. B. Mujumdar. Natrang movie fame renowned actress Sonali Kulkarni will also be present at the occassion.”

Speaking about the awards, Vishal Chordia stated, “The preparation of spices, pickles, papads, and other products under the Pravin Masalewale brand was started over six decades ago by the late Hukumchand (Bhau) Chordia and the late Kamalbai Chordia (Bai). Owing to their consistent commitment to quality and customer service, Pravin products quickly gained prominence. The tireless efforts and integrity of Bhau and Bai, along with the contributions of subsequent generations of the Chordia family, have shaped and transformed the business over time. They have significantly contributed to the growth and success of brands such as Suhana, Ambari, Pravina, and Sarvam. The inspiration behind the awards we are presenting today comes from their legacy.

“During their times of enthusiasm and struggle, Bhau and Bai Chordia were consistently encouraged and praised by many individuals and organizations for their progress in the business. This encouragement inspired them to continue their enterprise with even greater vigour and grit. Following this concept, my father, Rajkumar Chordia, initiated the ‘Udyog Janani Kamal Award’ in 2000 to honour women who have made extraordinary contributions to the business sector. After the hiatus due to COVID, the award has been reinstated and restructured as the ‘Suhana Kamal Award.’ The next generation of the Chordia family is carrying forward this legacy with competence, excelling in both business and social work,” added Vishal Chordia.

To ensure the awards are impartial, the Trust has established an organizing and selection committee comprising former MP Vandana Chavan as the chair the committee, senior social activist Nirmala Samant-Prabhavalkar, Justice Shalini Phansalkar Joshi, former Police Commissioner Meeran Chadha Borwankar, senior journalist Vijaya Patil, educationist Swati Mujumdar, entrepreneur Sulajja Firodia Motwani, and veteran actress Nishigandha Wad.