Celebrating Ability Beyond Barriers, the 24th CavinKare Ability Awards 2026 Honours Five India’s Trailblazing Achievers with Disabilities
Photo Caption- L-R : Mr. Madhan Karky, Lyricist, Lt Gen Arun Ananthanarayan, PVSM, YSM, SM, VSM (Retd), Dr. Vinod Surana, Managing Partner & CEO, Surana & Surana International Attorneys; Mr. CK Ranganathan - Chairman & Managing Director, Cavinkare Pvt Ltd; Ms. Jayshree Raveendran, Founder & Hon. Executive Director, Ability Foundation; Chandra Mouli Dwarapureddy - Winner of CavinKare Ability Mastery Award; Mr. Arivuraja Thangavelu - Winner of CavinKare Ability Mastery Award; CA Sunil Jain - Winner of CavinKare Special Recognition Award; Mr. Shiv Kumar Sharma -Winner of CavinKare Ability Mastery Award; Dr. Jitender Aggarwal - Winner of CavinKare Ability Award of Eminence; Thanya Nathan C - Kerala’s first blind judge; Deepika TC - captain of the World Cup winning blind women’s cricket team and others.
Chennai, 14th February, 2026: Celebrating stories that transcend
barriers and inspire change, CavinKare, in partnership with Ability
Foundation, organised the 24th CavinKare Ability Awards 2026.
5 exceptional achievers with disabilities from across the country and
across diverse fields were honoured. The landmark ceremony brought to the
forefront inspiring individuals whose journeys have redefined perceptions and
driven meaningful change. Eminent dignitaries led by Deepika T.C,
captain of the World Cup winning blind women’s cricket team and Thanya Nathan,
who is set to become Kerala’s first blind judge, attended the event and
felicitated the recipients, reaffirming the importance of inclusion in all
spheres.
A
soulful musical concert by Purushothaman, winner of the 2023 Sa Re ga ma pa
music reality show and Abinaya Shenbagaraj, well-known classical musician along with their team
enthralled the audience. Sign language interpretation during the performance
further underscored the message of total inclusion in the arts.
Established in 2003, the CavinKare Ability Awards have, over the years,
recognised and honoured more than 100 exemplary individuals with disabilities
from across the country for their outstanding contributions to society. The
awards are presented under two distinguished categories: the CavinKare Ability
Award for Eminence, which honours a person with disability who has founded an
organisation that has created a transformative and lasting social impact; and
the CavinKare Ability Mastery Awards, which recognise individuals with
disabilities who have demonstrated excellence, distinction, and leadership in
their respective fields. Together, these categories celebrate both visionary
institution-builders and individuals whose achievements continue to redefine
perceptions of ability and excellence in India.
This year’s awardees
represent a unique and diverse cohort from varied fields and domains. Spanning
disciplines such as education, employment, entrepreneurship, law,
technology, arts, and civic engagement, The awardees have excelled in their
respective areas while challenging societal perceptions and emerging as
powerful agents of change.
The awardees of this
year’s edition were hand-picked by an esteemed jury panel comprising
distinguished experts from diverse disciplines, in recognition of their
triumphs against all odds. The jury members for this year included Lt Gen Arun
Ananthanarayan, PVSM, YSM, SM, VSM (Retd); Dr. Vinod Surana, Managing Partner
& CEO, Surana & Surana International Attorneys; Dr. Mariazeena Johnson,
Chancellor, Sathyabama Institute of Science and Technology; Mr. Madhan Karky,
Lyricist and Screenwriter; and Mr. Lakshminarayanan Duraiswamy, Managing
Director, Sundaram Home Finance Limited.
Commenting
on the occasion, Mr. CK Ranganathan, Chairman and Managing Director,
CavinKare Pvt. Ltd., said, “It is truly inspiring to see how individuals
with disabilities continue to redefine excellence by rising above constraints
and creating their own milestones. By honouring these worthy recipients, we
recognise journeys that go beyond personal achievement to create a powerful
ripple effect, driving meaningful societal change and strengthening the
conversation around inclusion. The CavinKare Ability Awards celebrate this
courage, determination, and exceptional talent, and we are honoured to
spotlight stories that challenge assumptions and inspire communities to think
differently. This initiative reflects our commitment to building a society
where potential is never limited by perception, and where everyone is
encouraged to aspire, excel, and go further than imagined.”
Congratulating
the recipients, Ms. Jayshree Raveendran, Founder & Hon. Executive
Director, Ability Foundation, said,” For 24 remarkable and amazing years, we
have been fortunate to have been able to showcase the true potential of
individuals with disabilities. An immensely rewarding journey, indeed. Each
year, we witness the profound impact of our mission, as we continue to honour
those who break barriers and inspire change.
Right
from the nomination stages uptill witnessing the difficulty faced by our
esteemed jury members in selecting the recipients, is a testament to the
exceptional quality of nominees we receive year after year. Each nominee not
only brings in their own unique story but also represents the potential for
growth and success within the disability sector making the whole process a
gratifying experience for everyone involved.
As we
move forward, our commitment to empowering & including people with
disabilities remains steadfast. We continue our mission to amplify voices that need to be heard in order
to smoothen the path for a more
inclusive future.”
The recipients of CavinKare Ability Awards
2026 are:
1. CavinKare Ability Special Recognition
Award:
Sunil Jain, Bengaluru,
Karnataka
Sunil Jain is the Founder Trustee and Chief Enabler of ASTHA, an
organisation that works with persons with disabilities to support aspirational
education, career pathways, civic participation, and access to sports and the
arts. A Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, he has over
two decades of experience in tax, audit, and corporate consulting. His early
life included long periods of medical treatment for a physical disability
caused by poliomyelitis, which shaped his commitment to dignity, participation,
and aspiration. Founded in 2007, ASTHA runs initiatives such as career
mentoring programmes and the Indian Wheelchair Tennis Tour. His work has been
recognised with the Karmaveer Chakra and as an India Inclusion Fellow, and
continues to influence inclusive thinking across education, sport, and public
life.
2. CavinKare Ability Award for Eminence:
Dr. Jitender Aggarwal,
Gurugram, Haryana
Dr. Jitender Aggarwal is the founder and leader of Sarthak Educational
Trust, working to expand access to education, skills, and employment for
persons with disabilities across India. After losing his vision due to macular
degeneration, he saw first-hand how systems often exclude people with
disabilities from mainstream opportunities. Through Sarthak, he has helped
build clear pathways from early support to skills and jobs, worked closely with
employers to make hiring more inclusive, and strengthened confidence on both
sides of the workplace. His work has also focused on children with
disabilities, digital access, and building shared platforms for learning,
research, and collaboration, with the larger aim of dignity, independence, and
sustained participation in society.
3. CavinKare Ability Mastery Awards:
Arivuraja Thangavelu, Kattumannar Koil,Tamil Nadu
Arivuraja Thangavelu is an entrepreneur who has spent years building
work opportunities for people who are often left out of formal employment. He
lives with a locomotor disability caused by polio,which has shaped how he
thinks about access, work, and independence. Through MAPe IT Solutions, he has
built a technology-led organisation working on drone surveys, mapping, and
digital services, while training and employing persons with disabilities and
youth from rural backgrounds. Many who
joined without prior exposure now handle live projects, client coordination,
and technical tasks. His focus has been steady employment, skill-building, and
giving people the confidence to take responsibility and move forward on their
own.
Shiv Kumar
Sharma,Chandigarh, Punjab
Shiv Kumar Sharma works in disability rights in Chandigarh through legal
awareness, theatre, and film. As a State Legal Services Consultant, he runs
programmes that explain laws and government support to persons with
disabilities. He also works in theatre and cinema, and played the lead role in
Rabb Di Awaaz, India’s first multi-inclusive Hindi feature film. Shiv is blind
since birth, and his own life experience helps him connect easily with people
and their concerns. He co-founded the Rotaract Positive Ability Club and leads
programmes such as Dinner in the Dark, which help the public understand
blindness and support scholarships for visually impaired students.
Chandra Mouli Dwarapureddy,
Narsipatnam, Andhra Pradesh
Chandra Mouli Dwarapureddy had just completed his BTech when, at the age
of 21, an electrical accident resulted in the amputation of both arms and legs.
The months that followed demanded patience, courage, and steadiness. Within six
months, he was using prosthetic limbs and finding new ways to study, work, and
live independently. He returned to academics with focus, completed a Law
degree, cleared the CAT, and went on to
study at IIM Ahmedabad.He has worked with Amazon and is currently with
Accenture. Alongside his work, he stays closely connected with students and
professionals with disabilities, sharing what has helped him move forward -
clear thinking, sustained effort, and belief in one’s own ability to shape life
through action.
About
CavinKare: CavinKare
is a diversified FMCG major with business interest in personal care,
professional care, dairy, snacks, foods, beverages & salons. The brand
portfolio consists of Shampoos (CHIK, Meera, Karthika, and Nyle), Hair Wash
Powders (Meera &Karthika), Coconut Oil (Meera), Skin Creams (Fairever &
Spinz), Deodorant; Talc (Spinz), Pickles (Ruchi & Chinni's) and Snacks
(Garden), Hair colors (Indica), Retail Salon Products (Raaga Professional),
Beverages (Maa), Dairy (Cavin's), Beauty Salons (Green Trends & Limelite),
and D2C Personal Care products (Buds and Berries). Most of the brands are clear
winners in their respective product categories. A dedicated R&D center
equipped with the latest equipment and technologies constantly supports the
divisions in their endeavour. CavinKare has achieved significant milestones and
a competitive edge with a sound understanding of mass marketing dynamics and
has established a firm foothold in the national market. CavinKare's success is
based on it being firmly grounded to its corporate mission 'We shall grow
significantly better than the industry by fostering innovation and building
preferred brands, through passionate and delighted employees'.
About Ability Foundation: Established in 1995, with a
philosophy much ahead of its time, Ability Foundation, headquartered in
Chennai, has established itself as a national cross-disability umbrella
organisation that has incessantly worked across the country towards an
equitable society for every citizen with disability. By emphasizing the
potential of people with disabilities and empowering them through trailblazing
initiatives, Ability Foundation moves steadfastly to bridge the gap between
people with and without disabilities. The Foundation engages in a range of
activities from publishing, employment, media, and culture, to implementation
of policy, legislation, and human rights, to realize the unwavering commitment
towards an equitable civil society. Ability Foundation operates under the tenet
that barriers created by societal attitudes rather than actual disabilities are
what truly hinder people. Given the right opportunities at the right time, so
much more is possible - an open mind is all it takes.
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