MUMBAI: Expect some fizzy fun when beer brand Kingfisher hosts a fashion awards. And that's just what happened at the Kingfisher Fashion Awards 2005 held recently.

The Kingfisher Fashion Awards – one of the first fashion awards - brought together Indian designers, ravishing models and the hottest celebrities to honour the contributions of professionals in the fashion industry who have worked hard to establish themselves in a highly competitive market.

The judges for this year were Dr Vijay Mallya, Prasad Bidapa, Shobhaa De, Nonita Kalra, Asha Baxi, Atul Kasbekar, Sathya Saran, Caroline Young and Feroze Gujral.

The highlight of the evening was the new line of Kingfisher pr?t unveiled by eminent designer Manoviraj Khosla. Neeta Lulla, Rajesh Pratap Singh and Narendra Kumar also showcased their latest collections. India’s top models including Sheetal Malhar, Nethra Raghuraman, Fleur Xavier, Acquin Pais, Shahwar Ali, Aryan Vaid, Upen Patel, Muzamil Ibrahim, Praveen Sirohi, Inder Mohan Sudan, Zulfi Syed and Rajneesh Duggal walked the ramp for this show.

As a build up to the event, Kingfisher Model Hunt was conducted in the most happening night spots of Mumbai. The model hunt was conceived to ensure that new talent was given an appropriate platform to make their debut and get recognised. Judges Atul Kasbekar, Prasad Bidapa and Manoviraj Khosla selected Jasmine Dawda and Tanveer Shah to walk the ramp with India’s topnotch models.

UB Group chairman DR Vijay Mallya said, “The Kingfisher Fashion Awards play a significant role in encouraging and promoting the best in Indian fashion industry. We are delighted to have created this platform to celebrate exceptional talent. It is not only designers and models we honour, but also the creative foundations on which this industry is built.”

The winners were as follows:
Category    Winner
Designer of the year    Rajesh Pratap Singh
Female Model of the year    Deepika Padukone
Male Model of the year    Rajneesh Duggal
Photographer of the year    Bharat Sikka
Lifetime achievement Award    Shahab Durazi
Make-up artist of the year    Mickey Contractor
Hair stylist of the year    Cory Walia
Fashion writer of the year    Superna Motwane
Contribution to the fashion industry    Neeta Lulla
Contribution to the fashion industry    Narendra Kumar
New model of the year - male    Mustafa Hussain
New model of the year - female    Rachael Bayros