Veteran filmmaker, media entrepreneur and Indian animation industry pioneer Ketan Mehta and artist, filmmaker and art academic Prof. Nina Sabnani will be honoured at the 2021 edition of Animation Masters Summit. Organised by Toonz Media Group, the virtual Summit will be held from May 4 to 8, 2021, over the Zoom platform.

Sabnani, who teaches at the IDC School of Design, at IIT Bombay, is one of the first women artists to foray into the field of animation in India.

Hailed as a brilliant visual story-teller and recipient of several national and international awards, she received the National Award for Best Animation Film for her film Hum Chitra Banate Hai.

A Fulbright Fellow, Prof. Sabnani has also done extensive research in the areas of Folklore, Visual Ethnography, Participatory Film-making and learning pedagogies of traditional artists, among others.

She is also the author of several books on traditional art and design and has been acclaimed for her documentaries and short-films including The Stitches Speak (Tanko Bole Chhe), Baat Wahi Hai (It’s the Same Story) and Mukand and Riaz.

In 2018 she received the lifetime achievement award (BLBA) for Illustration from Tata Trusts at the Tata Lit Live Festival at Mumbai.

She will be awarded the Legend of Indian Animation Award at Animation Masters Summit 2021.

Ketan Mehta, best known for award-winning films like Bhavni Bhavai (Gujarati), Mirch Masala, Maya Memsab, Mangal Pandey, Holi and Sardar (all Hindi), is the founder of Maya Academy of Advanced Cinematics and Cosmos Maya Studios.

Maya Academy is best known for popular animation IPs like Motu Patlu, Kisna, Vir- the robot boy, Een-Meena-Deeka, etc.

Mehta is a recipient of the French Government’s “The officer of the realm of Arts and Literature’ award. He will be awarded the Special Contribution to Indian Animation Industry Award for his overall contributions to the industry.

Both the awards will be presented at the inaugural session of the Summit on May 4.

According to P Jayakumar, CEO – Toonz Media Group, “Every year at Animation Masters Summit we give away the Legend Award to a legendary animation master in recognition of their life-long contribution to Indian Animation. Prof Nina Sabnani is one of the most revered figures in Indian animation today. She is like a guru to all of us in the fraternity. As a pioneering woman animator, she is also an inspiration for hundreds of young women who aspire to join this industry.”

He added: “Ketan Mehta, who is being awarded the Special Contribution Award, has helped put the Indian animation community on the global map by founding one of the most successful animation studios in India. He also played a significant role in fostering new talent by establishing the Maya Academy.”

The five-day Animation Masters Summit will include sessions by a galaxy of stalwarts from diverse fields of media and entertainment across the world.

Legendary Indian filmmaker Subhash Ghai will deliver the keynote address at the inaugural session of the Summit.

Master sessions in the following days will be led by renowned artists and creators including legendary ad guru Rahul daCunha, best known for spearheading the Amul ad campaign, one of the longest running ad campaigns in the country.

The Summit will also have two panel discussions – one on the scope of animation in Education Technology (EdTech) and the another curated by Animation World Network (AWN) focussing on diversity in the kids entertainment industry.

Delegates can register for the event for free by logging on to http://www.animationsummit.in