India Is is a series of photography and video challenges organized by the
Public Diplomacy Division (PDD) of the
Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Government of India.
[Stabroek News]
stabroeknews.com, 16 December 2011.[GLOBAL VIDEO CHALLENGE: “INDIA IS.......”](_blank)
indiahc-ghana.com, 5 September 2011 Both of the contests invite photo and video entries, respectively, on given themes.
[INDIA IS COMPETITION](_blank)
indianconsulateatlanta.org
The first edition of the India Is Global Video challenge was launched in October 2011,
[“India Is…….” Global Video Contest](_blank)
Consulate General of Indian Vancouver, BC during the tenure of the then Under Secretary of the Public Diplomacy Division
Abhay Kumar and Joint Secretary
Navdeep Suri.;
[CONTESTS AS A TOOL OF PUBLIC DIPLOMACY:THE “INDIA IS…” GLOBAL VIDEO CONTEST](_blank)
, exchangediplomacy.com which was followed by the next edition in November 2012. The first edition of the photograph challenge was launched in October 2012.
The aim of the Challenges is to highlight the 'soft power' prevalent in India, to better understand India’s influence abroad and the perception others share about India.
India is wherever you are
''The Times of India
''The Times of India'', also known by its abbreviation ''TOI'', is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by The Times Group. It is the third-largest newspaper in India by circulation and largest ...
'', 5 September 2012
Video challenge
2011
Launched on 1 October 2011 and closed on 31 December 2011, the first Video Challenge allowed each participant to submit one video per theme, each 3 minutes long.[Call to Participate in ‘India Is’ Global Video Challenge 2011](_blank)
fundsforngos.org, 18 October 2011 The themes for the videos to be submitted were:[Event Shout Out : ‘India Is’ Global Video Challenge 2011](_blank)
ofindianorigin.co.uk, 25 October 2011
* India Is ... Colourful
* India Is ... Creative
* India Is ... Wherever you are
The first edition of video challenge received 245 qualifying videos with participants from 40 countries including Peru, Romania, Armenia, Belarus, Serbia, Palestine, Moldova, Nicaragua, Lithuania, Chile, Panama, Colombia, Mexico, Ethiopia and Turkey. 123 of the 245 qualifying videos were from outside of India, the highest response being from Europe and North America.[India is… Global Video Challenge](_blank)
Indian Embassy Austria
Partners
Partners for the India Is Global Video Challenge 2011 include the Public Diplomacy Division, Incredible India, AZB and Partners, Mobile Film Works and Skarma.[Mobilefilmworks Signs Agreement With 'India Is', To Stream Top Thirty(30) Video Film Finalist to Mobile](_blank)
24-7pressrelease.com, 22 February 2012
Jury and Brand Ambassador
The ambassadors for India Is Global Video Challenge 2011 were Dr. Shashi Tharoor and Shekhar Kapur.[Dr. Shashi Tharoor on 'India Is' Global Video Challenge 2011](_blank)
linkingface.com, 24 February 2013[Shekhar Kapur on New Age Filmmaking – 'India Is' Global Video Challenge 2011](_blank)
linkingface.com, 24 February 2013
The jury members for the India Is Global Video Challenge 2011 were Karl Bardosh, Gargi Sen, Sanjoy K Roy, Priya Jaikumar, Rahul Sahgal and Sandeep Chatterjee.[Discussion Board : The WaterCooler](_blank)
productionbase.co.uk, 5 October 2011
Winners
The winners of the India Is Global Video Challenge 2011 were:
indiais.org
2012
The second edition of the Video Challenge was launched on 9 November 2012 by Riva Ganguly Das
Riva Ganguly Das (born 24 December 1961) is an Indian civil servant who belongs to the Indian Foreign Service cadre. She is the former High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh and former Director General of the Indian Council for Cultural Relat ...
, Joint Secretary, PDD and Nikesh Arora
Nikesh Arora (born February 9, 1968) is an Indian-American business executive. Arora was formerly a senior executive at Google. He served as the president of SoftBank Group from October 2014 to June 2016. On June 1, 2018, Arora took on the role ...
, Chief Business Officer and Senior Vice-President, of Google Inc.[YouTube launch global short film contest on India](_blank)
''Hindustan Times
''Hindustan Times'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper based in Delhi. It is the flagship publication of HT Media, an entity controlled by the KK Birla family, and is owned by Shobhana Bhartia.
It was founded by Sunder Singh Lyall ...
'', 9 November 2012 The competition closed for entries on 11 March 2013. For this edition India Is partnered with filmmaker Anurag Kashyap
Anurag Kashyap (born 10 September 1972) is an Indian filmmaker and actor known for his works in Hindi cinema. He is the recipient of several accolades, including four Filmfare Awards. For his contributions to film, the Government of France a ...
along with his team of directors to produce five short films under the three categories – India Is Incredible, India Is Unforgettable and India Is Wherever You Are.
The Challenge received a total of 329 participating videos from over 20 countries including India, United Kingdom, United States of America, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Portugal, Japan, Singapore, Spain, Italy, Germany, France, Malaysia, Mexico, Hungary, Slovakia, Romania, China, Austria and Australia.[YouTube launch global short film contest on India](_blank)
ummid.com, 9 November 2012
Partners
Partners for the India Is Global Video Challenge 2012 included Public Diplomacy Division, YouTube India, Incredible India, Conde Nast Traveller India, Taj Holidays, Avid Learning, Pocket Films and Skarma.[‘India Is’ Global Video Challenge](_blank)
, ''Condé Nast Traveler
''Condé Nast Traveler'' is a luxury and lifestyle travel magazine published by Condé Nast. The magazine has won 25 National Magazine Awards.
The Condé Nast unit of Advance Publications purchased ''Signature'', a magazine for Diners Club memb ...
''
Jury and Brand Ambassador
Anurag Kashyap and Professor Karl Bardosh were the brand ambassadors for the second edition.[The Grand Jury – India Is Global Video Challenge 2012](_blank)
'' Google+'', 13 February 2013
Winners
Theme: India Is Incredible:
* Winner: Incredible India sand art by Hari Krishna.
* Runner-up 1: India is Incredible by Christopher Crodieu (chris.miguelquental)
* Runner-up 2: Incredible India by Dhruv Kapoor
Theme: India Is Wherever You Are:
* Winner: Ho Chai!! by Purple Productions Ind.
* Runner-up 1: Oars of Glory & Gloom – A short film by Sudhyasheel Sen
* Runner-up 2: Incredible India by Muthu Venkat
Theme: India Is Unforgettable, It Stays With You:
* Winner: Confined by Gloria Kurnik
* Runner-up 1: India is Unforgettable by Jagriti Khirwar
* Runner-up 2: The Imprint by Karan Singhmar
People's Choice Award (Public voting): Home in a Room by Srinath
Photography Challenge
2012
The first Photography Challenge was launched on 5 October 2012 and ended on 30 November 2012.[The India Is Global Photography Challenge 2012](_blank)
photographycompetitions.net
The Photography Challenge received 2,777 photographs from 20 countries including India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
, Bahrain
Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ...
, Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
, The United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
, The United States of America
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...
, Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
, Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
, Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
, Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
, Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
, Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
, Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...
, China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
, Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
, Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
, Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
, Albania
Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...
, Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
, Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...
and Slovakia
Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...
.[The India Is Global Photography Challenge 2012](_blank)
contestwatchers.com, 26 October 2012[Social Media Campaign Review: India Is](_blank)
socialsamosa.com, 19 November 2012
Partners
The partners were Public Diplomacy Division, Google India, Incredible India, Conde Nast Traveller India, Taj Holidays, Avid Learning and Skarma.['India Is' Global Photography Challenge](_blank)
, ""Condé Nast Traveler
''Condé Nast Traveler'' is a luxury and lifestyle travel magazine published by Condé Nast. The magazine has won 25 National Magazine Awards.
The Condé Nast unit of Advance Publications purchased ''Signature'', a magazine for Diners Club memb ...
""
Jury
The panel of jurists for the Global Photography Challenge 2012 included Divia Thani Daswani, Alka Pandey, Brinda Miller, Divya Thakur, Matthieu Foss, Agnello Dias and Alok Nanda.[The India Is Global Photography Challenge 2012](_blank)
photographycompetitions.net
Winners
Theme: India Is Unforgettable, It Stays With You: [India is…..](_blank)
trippinonlife.wordpress.com, 15 April 2013
* Winner: Sugato Mukherjee
* Runner-up 1: Prayash Giria
* Runner-up 2: Matusalen Matusalen
Theme: India Is Incredible:
* Winner: Supriya Biswas
* Runner-up 1: Sudipto Das
* Runner-up 2: S Kumar S
Theme: India Is Wherever You Are:
* Winner: Sujan Sarkar
* Runner-up 1: Avijit Roy
* Runner-up 2: Jana Hunterova
See also
* Public Diplomacy Division (PDD)
* Incredible India
* eDiplomacy
* Abhay Kumar
References
External links
India Is Official Site
Public Diplomacy Division Official Site
Incredible India Official Site
Further reading
{{Asia topic, Government of, title=Governments of Asia, TW=Government of the Republic of China
Ministry of External Affairs (India)