For the first time at Ann Awards 2024, AnimationXpress in association with Women in Cloud, introduced the Icons Award for “Outstanding achievement in animation by a woman,” with the acclaimed Indian artist Charuvi Agrawal named as the inaugural recipient.
With this recognition, AnimationXpress and Women in Cloud aim to advance the role of women in the animation industry and foster AI skilling and talent development. The Icons Awards has been introduced to honour the achievements of women in animation, celebrating their creativity, leadership, and impact in the industry.
Also read: Ann Awards 2024: Complete list of winners
Known for her outstanding work in animation and installation art, Charuvi Agrawal, founder of Charuvi Design Labs (CDL) and co-creator of the acclaimed animated series The Legend of Hanuman on Disney+ Hotstar, was presented with the award by AnimationXpress COO Neha Mehta, Women in Cloud board board of advisor Kushagra Sharma, and Divya Khossla – a director, producer, writer, and actor. Agrawal, a pioneer in blending traditional artistry with modern technology, has integrated AI into CDL’s creative process, advancing hybrid animation pipelines.
On receiving the award, an ecstatic Agrawal shared, “Thank you so much AnimationXpress and Women In Cloud for this incredible honour. This award is not just about me, it’s a recognition for the entire women community in the Indian animation industry.”
Agrawal’s studio has tackled technologically challenging projects, designing immersive experiences for buses and creating virtual museum interactives. Her recent works include Dastaan-e-Shahadat, an anthology of animated films on Guru Gobind Singh, and the short film The Ballad of Prahlad: Narsimha Awakens. “It’s about the love, dedication, hardwork, sleepless nights, and creativity, that goes into creating every single frame of magic,” she expressed during the Ann Awards ceremony.
On the significant occasion, Khosla, who presented the award to Agrawal said, “It’s my pleasure being here amongst all you talented people. I am aware of how much all of you toil behind the scenes so that our films can look great. Hats off and congratulations to all of you.”
Women In Cloud is a global network of one lakh women in technology, across 67 countries. They work together to make the tech industry more inclusive and create positive change.
Each year, the Animation and More Summit – the largest conference bringing the Indian animation industry under one roof – culminates into the Ann Awards ceremony, honouring excellence in the sector.
The fifth edition of the summit took place this year on 3 and 4 September at Nesco in Mumbai.