Nobel Prize-winning Indian-origin author VS Naipaul and Pakistani teenage campaigner Malala Yousafzai have been named among Britain’s 500 most influential people across different fields.
The first-ever ‘Influential 500’ list, compiled by specialist publisher Debrett’s and The Sunday Times newspaper, includes personalities in 25 areas chosen by experts in their field.
While Yousafzai makes the cut in the ‘charity and campaigning’ field, Naipaul stands out as the only Indian-origin author in the ‘writers’ category.
“Shot in Pakistan by the Taliban, she recuperated in the UK. Now 16, she was the youngest nominee for the Nobel Peace Prize,” says the listing in reference to the now Birmingham-based “blogger and campaigner for girls’ education”.
Trinidad-born Sir Vidiadhar Surajprasad Naipaul is singled out for his Nobel Prize in literature in 2001.
Among some of the other Indian-origin professionals to make their mark include Dr Chaand Nagpaul, chair of the British Medical Association (BMA) GP Committee as leader of the “only body to represent all NHS [National Health Service] GPs”, in the healthcare category.
India-born Sunand Prasad has been included in the list for his work in the field of architecture; and Jaipur-born Anshu Jain, chief executive of Deutsche Bank, in the finance category for his role in running the world’s fourth-largest investment bank.