In the popular category of cinema and music for NDTV’s Indian of the Year award, the nominees include Shah Rukh Khan, who is basking in the glory of OSO and Chak De, and Rajnikanth who has redefined box office success with his latest blockbuster Sivaji. Actor Shilpa Shetty and singer Himesh Reshammiya are also among the nominees. The category has another unusual nominee: the Chak de girls, a cast of 16 reel-life state champions who came together to form a national team in the movie Chak De India.

In the category of music, nominees include veteran music director A R Rahman and new-comers like Pritam and Vishal Shekhar. The names of Sukhwinder Singh and Sunidhi Chauhan have also been shortlisted.

Shahrukh Khan: The actor has won over 50 national and international awards, six Filmfare awards in the Best Actor category, recipient of the Padma Shree in 2005, won the Best Indian Citizen Award in 1997 and recipient of the Rajiv Gandhi Award for Excellence in the Field of Entertainment in 2002.

Rajnikanth: South India’s biggest star. He has acted in over 170 films. Worked in Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Hindi and Bengali films. He has won a number of awards, including India’s third highest honour, the Padma Bhushan in 2000, Raj Kapoor Award in 2007.

Shilpa Shetty: Has worked in almost 50 films. Won 2007 Celebrity Big Brother contest. The De Montfort University in Leicester, UK has conferred upon her an honorary degree of Doctor of Arts in 2007. She has also won the Silver Star Award for her outstanding contribution to humanitarian causes.

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