News Broadcasting
News18 Tamil Nadu hosts non-stop live panel discussions as countdown to Chandrayaan landing begins
Mumbai: News18 Tamil Nadu is thrilled to announce an all-day program dedicated to the monumental Chandrayaan Landing event, providing viewers with exclusive live coverage and insightful discussions on this landmark achievement. Set against the backdrop of Sriharikota, this comprehensive program aims to bring the excitement and significance of Chandrayaan to every household while delving into the intricacies of space exploration and scientific advancement. Scheduled for 23 August, the program promises an array of enriching content, with a special focus on the historic landing event, taking place from 4:30 pm to 6:00 pm. Viewers can expect an immersive experience, combining live coverage with expert panel discussions throughout the day. The event is designed to cater to the inquisitive minds of all age groups, offering a unique opportunity to witness science in action and engage with the driving forces behind Chandrayaan.
The heart of the program lies in the esteemed panel of experts who will lead captivating discussions, unraveling the science and technology that underpins the Chandrayaan mission. The distinguished panelists include Dr. K Sivan, Former Chairman, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO); Mayilsami Annadurai, Project Director, Chandrayaan 2; Sivanadhu Pillai, Former Chairman, Defense Research and Development Organisation (DRDO); TVV Venkateswaran, Senior Scientist, Vigyan Prasar; N Sivasubramaniam, Senior Scientist (Retired), ISRO; Nambi Narayan, Senior Scientist (Retired), ISRO; Nellai Muthu: Scientist (Retired), ISRO; Ramesh Chelladurai, Ground Operations Engineer, European Space Operation Centre; Lenin Tamilkovan, Scientific Officer, Tamilnadu Science and Technology Centre and Dr. Pandiyan, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)
Through lively discussions, these luminaries will dissect the intricacies of Chandrayaan’s mission, unveil the advancements in space technology, and offer insights into the motivations driving the exploration of the moon’s surface. This interactive platform is designed to let the general public understand the profound significance of Chandrayaan and its implications for India’s scientific endeavors. The host for this important day would be News18 Tamil Nadu editor Karthigaichelvan.S.
The program’s highlight will undoubtedly be the special coverage of the landing event, slated for 4:30 pm to 6:00 pm, as the nation holds its breath for this historic moment. News18 Tamil Nadu is committed to delivering real-time updates and commentary, allowing viewers throughout the region to be a part of this historic event.
News Broadcasting
TOISA 2026 shortlists unveiled ahead of Lucknow ceremony
Eighth edition on March 21 honours standout performers from 2025.
MUMBAI: TOISA 2026 just dropped a shortlist so stacked, even the trophy is wondering if it needs a bigger shelf. The Times of India Sports Awards (TOISA) has revealed its 2026 shortlists, setting the stage for the eighth edition on 21 March at The Centrum Hotel in Lucknow. Celebrating achievements from 1 January to 31 December 2025 across more than 45 sports categories, this year’s nominees capture a golden 12 months of Indian sport from ODI and T20 World Cup triumphs to double golds at the Asian Athletics Championships and podium finishes at the World Para Athletics Championships.
For the first time, TOISA opens its doors to the public. Passes are available at timesofindia.indiatimes.com/toisa2025.
Standout shortlists include:
- Badminton (Male): Lakshya Sen, Ayush Shetty, Kiran George, Chirag Shetty, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy
- Badminton (Female): Tanvi Sharma, Unnati Hooda, Tressa Jolly, Gayatri Gopichand
- Cricket (Male): Shubman Gill, Abhishek Sharma, Ravindra Jadeja, Varun Chakaravarthy, KL Rahul, Kuldeep Yadav
- Cricket (Female): Smriti Mandhana, Pratika Rawal, Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma, Shafali Verma
- Athletics (Male): Neeraj Chopra, Animesh Kujur, Gulveer Singh, Sachin Yadav
- Athletics (Female): Parul Chaudhary, Rupal Chaudhary, Jyothi Yarraji, Pooja Singh
- Shooting (Female): Suruchi Inder Singh, Simranpreet Kaur, Esha Singh, Elavenil Valarivan, Sift Kaur Samra, Manu Bhaker
- Emerging Sportsperson: Tanvi Sharma (badminton), Divya Deshmukh (chess), Shree Charani (cricket), Vaibhav Suryavanshi (cricket)
- Team of the Year: India Women’s Cricket Team, India Men’s Cricket Team, India Men’s Hockey Team, India Men’s & Women’s Kabaddi Teams, India National Shooting Team, India Women’s Cricket Team for the Blind, India Squash Team, India Women’s Ice Hockey Team
| Category | Shortlist 1 | Shortlist 2 | Shortlist 3 | Shortlist 4 | Shortlist 5 | Shortlist 6 | Column 1 | Column 2 |
| Badminton male | Lakshya Sen | Ayush Shetty | Kiran George | Chirag Shetty | Satwiksairaj Rankireddy | |||
| Badminton female | Tanvi Sharma | Unnati Hooda | Tressa Jolly | Gayatri Gopichand | ||||
| Cricket male | Shubman Gill | Abhishek Sharma | Ravindra Jadeja | Varun Chakaravarthy | KL Rahul | Kuldeep Yadav | ||
| Cricket female | Smriti Mandhana | Pratika Rawal | Jemimah Rodrigues | Deepti Sharma | Shafali Verma | |||
| Athletics (Track and field) male | Neeraj Chopra | Animesh Kujur | Gulveer Singh | Sachin Yadav | ||||
| Athletics (Track and field) female | Parul Chaudhary | Rupal Chaudhary | Jyothi Yarraji | Pooja Singh | ||||
| Sportsperson of the year (combined of all sports) | Divya Deshmukh | Suruchi Inder Singh | Smriti Mandhana | Samrat Rana | ||||
| Equestrian | Ashish Limaye | Shruti Vora | Divyakriti Singh | |||||
| Hockey male | Abhishek Nain | Harmanpreet Singh | Jugraj Singh | Amit Rohidas | ||||
| Hockey female | Udita Duhan | Navneet Kaur | Mumtaz Khan | Rutuja Pisal | ||||
| Shooting male | Samrat Rana | Ravinder Singh | Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar | Anish | Varun Tomar | Rudrankksh Patil | ||
| Shooting female | Suruchi Inder Singh | Simranpreet Kaur | Esha Singh | Elavenil Valarivan | Sift Kaur Samra | Manu Bhaker | ||
| Emerging sportsperson (combined) | Tanvi Sharma (badminton) | Divya Deshmukh (chess) | Shree Charani (cricket) | Vaibhav Suryavanshi (cricket) | ||||
| Coach of the year (male, female combined) | Amol Majumdar (Cricket) | Suresh Singh (Shooting) | Ashok Kumar Rana (Shooting) | |||||
| Chess male | Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa | Aravindh Chithambaram | Panneerselvam Iniyan | Nihal Sarin | Arjun Erigaisi | |||
| Chess female | Divya Deshmukh | Koneru Humpy | Vaishali Rameshbabu | Nandhidhaa PV | ||||
| Archery male | Dhiraj Bommadevara | Abhishek Verma | Atanu Das | Prathamesh Fuge | Rishabh Yadav | |||
| Archery female | Ankita Bhakat | Jyothi Surekha | Deepika Kumari | Prithika Pradeep | ||||
| Billiards/Snooker | Pankaj Advani | Aditya Mehta | Brijesh Damani | |||||
| Weightlifting male | Rishikanta Singh | Muthupandi Raja | Dilbag Singh | Lovepreet Singh | ||||
| Weightlifting female | Mirabai Chanu | Mehak Sharma | Bindyarani Devi | |||||
| Wrestling male | Sunil Kumar | Nitesh | Aman Sehrawat | Sujeet Kalkal | ||||
| Wrestling female | Antim Panghal | Manisha | Nisha Dahiya | |||||
| Squash male | Abhay Singh | Saurav Ghosal | Velavan Senthilkumar | Mahesh Mangaonkar | ||||
| Squash female | Anahat Singh | Joshna Chinappa | Dipika Pallikal Karthik | Tanvi Khanna | ||||
| Table Tennis male | Manav Thakkar | Sathiyan Gnanasekaran | Harmeet Desai | Payas Jain | ||||
| Table Tennis female | Manika Batra | Sreeja Akula | Diya Chitale | Ayhika Mukherjee | ||||
| Team of the Year (combined from all sports) | India Women’s Cricket Team | India Men’s Cricket Team | India Men’s Hockey Team | India Men’s & Women’s Kabaddi Teams | India National Shooting Team | India Women’s Cricket Team for the Blind | India Squash Team | India Women’s Ice Hockey Team |
| Tennis Male | Rohan Bopanna | Yuki Bhambri | Sumit Nagal | |||||
| Tennis Female | Ankita Raina | Vaishnavi Adkar | Sahaja Yamalapalli | |||||
| Football male | Subhasish Bose | Sunil Chhetri | Vishal Kaith | Brison Fernandes | Gurpreet Singh Sandhu | |||
| Football female | Soumya Guguloth | Grace Dangmei | Elangbam Panthoi Chanu | Manisha Kalyan | Pyari Xaxa | |||
| Kabaddi | Sanju Devi | Pawan Sehrawat | Ritu Negi | Arjun Deshwal | ||||
| Boxing male | Sachin Siwach | Hitesh Gulia | Pawan Bartwal | Ankush Panghal | ||||
| Boxing female | Minakshi Hooda | Jaismine Lamboria | Nikhat Zareen | Pooja Rani | ||||
| Sailing | Vishnu Saravanan | Zahaan Hemrajani | Abhimanyu Panwar | Ghashiayah A | ||||
| Para Archery male | Harvinder Singh | Vivek Chikara | Rakesh Kumar | Shyam Sunder Swami | ||||
| Para Archery female | Sheetal Devi | Payal Nag | Jyoti Baliyan | |||||
| Para Athlete (Track & Field) male | Sumit Antil | Shailesh Kumar | Sandeep Kumar | Nishad Kumar | ||||
| Para Athlete (Track & Field) female | Simran Sharma | Preethi Pal | Ekta Bhyan | Deepthi Jeevanji | ||||
| Para Badminton male | Pramod Bhagat | Sukant Kadam | Krishna Nagar | |||||
| Para badminton female | Mandeep Kaur | Manasi Joshi | Nithya Sre | |||||
| Para chess | Vaibhav Gautam | Samarth J Rao | Venkata Krishna Karthik K | |||||
| Para judo | Kapil Parmar | Avidha Sharma | Rahul Rajora | Kokila | ||||
| Para shooting male | Bhat Amir Ahmad | Nihal Singh | Sandeep Kumar | Rudransh Khandelwal | ||||
| Para shooting female | Mona Agarwal | Avani Lekhara | Rubi Kumari | |||||
| Para Sportsperson of the year | Sheetal Devi (Para Archery) | Praveen Kumar (Para Athletics – High Jump) | Preethi Pal (Para Athletics – Sprint) | Sumit Antil (Para Athletics – Javelin) | ||||
| Para Coach of the year | Dr. Satyapal Singh (Para Athletics) | Subhash Rana (Para Shooting) | Gaurav Khanna (Para Badminton) | Sandhya Bharti (Para Taekwondo) |
The jury comprises six of India’s most decorated athletes, Leander Paes, Mithali Raj, Abhinav Bindra, Devendra Jhajharia, Sharath Kamal and PR Sreejesh.
TOISA remains the one night on the Indian sporting calendar judged purely on merit, not popularity. This year’s edition in Lucknow, a state that has steadily become a powerhouse of grassroots talent reflects how excellence now runs deep across every region.
In a year when Indian sport refused to stay in one lane, TOISA isn’t just handing out trophies, it’s framing a portrait of a nation that’s finally sprinting, swinging and shooting its way onto the world stage, one unforgettable moment at a time.
