Hamsadhwani, the cultural organisation, celebrated its 35th anniversary by conferring the ‘Distinguished Citizen of the Year Award’ on Prof. V. Kamakoti, Director of IIT-Madras. The event, held in partnership with Sri Krishna Sweets, recognised his contributions to technology, education, and innovation.
Justice R. Subramanian, a former Madras High Court judge, presented the award. He praised Hamsadhwani for its role in promoting fine arts and lauded Prof. Kamakoti for his simplicity and efforts in building a ‘Viksit Bharat’.
B. Santhanam, former Chairman of Saint-Gobain Asia Pacific, complimented the selection of the awardee, noting that he joins a distinguished list of past honorees. He praised Prof. Kamakoti’s initiatives in making IIT-Madras a top-tier institution.
In his acceptance speech, Prof. Kamakoti thanked Hamsadhwani and spoke about new opportunities for students, highlighting two special courses at IIT-Madras: one for Sports Excellence and another for Fine Arts and Culture (FACE).

The award ceremony was followed by a vocal concert by the renowned Trichur Brothers.