Cover From left: Siti Aishah Hassan Hasri, Dr. Yin Ling Woo, Suriani Kempe, Geraldine Beh, Izzana Salleh, Ida Mok and Xin Yu Lim at the Front & Female Awards 2023 at Shangri-La Kuala Lumpur (Photo: Daniel Adams/Tatler Malaysia)
From left: Siti Aishah Hassan Hasri, Dr. Yin Ling Woo, Suriani Kempe, Geraldine Beh, Izzana Salleh, Ida Mok and Xin Yu Lim at the Front & Female Awards 2023 at Shangri-La Kuala Lumpur (Photo: Daniel Adams/Tatler Malaysia)
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Tatler Malaysia's inaugural Front & Female Awards revealed its six winners in an intimate dinner ceremony at the Shangri-La Kuala Lumpur
The Front & Female Awards 2023 in Malaysia kicked off on March 21 with an intimate dinner ceremony for approximately 70 esteemed guests. The awards event took place at Shangri-La Kuala Lumpur’s Lafite, which was adorned in bright red tones to match Front & Female’s signature colours and complemented by intricate floral arrangements of red roses.
Upon arrival, guests were treated to canapés by Shangri-La Kuala Lumpur as well as a free flow of Johnnie Walker Blue Label cocktails and Whispering Angel rosé. The ceremony started on a high note with Malaysian songstress Elvira Arul opening the programme with a high-octane set, followed by an upbeat welcome speech by Tatler Malaysia managing director Geraldine Beh.
Read more: The Front & Female Awards Malaysia 2023: Meet the winners
Siti Aishah Hassan Hasri, Dr. Yin Ling Woo, Suriani Kempe, Izzana Salleh, Ida Mok and Xin Yu Lim with their customised Royal Selangor trophies at the Front & Female Awards 2023 at Shangri-La Kuala Lumpur
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A highlight of the evening was a panel discussion on what makes female leadership thrive in Malaysia, featuring panel speakers Prof. Dato’ Dr Adeeba Kamarulzaman, chairman of the Malaysian AIDS Foundation; Dato' Hamidah Naziadin, independent director at Sime Darby Property and Maxis; Datuk Yvonne Chia, Standard Chartered Bank Malaysia Berhad independent non-executive chairman; with Willis Towers Watson managing director and country head Chin Han Lim as moderator.
See also: Cover Story: Suriani Kempe and Rekha Sen on fighting for equal citizenship
Dato' Hamidah Naziadin
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The panel talk speakers were chauffeured directly to the hotel lobby in sleek BMW i7s. The hotel's main entrance was also marked by the powerful presence of a BMW i7 display set up in conjunction with the awards. The panel talk concluded with a short Q&A portion with the audience, followed by a photo session with the four speakers as each was presented with a special gift from Lancome’s premium Absolue franchise.
Next was a brief video introducing the shortlisted 20 nominees for the Front & Female Awards, out of whom the six winners were eventually announced, namely Girls 4 Girls International global president Izzana Salleh, The Asli Co co-founder Xin Yu Lim, Rose Foundation founder Dr. Yin Ling Woo, Women in Blockchain Asia co-founder Ida Mok, Spot Community Project founder Siti Aishah Hassan Hasri, and Family Frontiers president Suriani Kempe.
Seared tuna canapes by Shangri-La Kuala Lumpur
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To several rounds of applause from the crowd, the winners were invited on stage to receive their customised Front & Female Awards trophies from Royal Selangor, presented by Geraldine Beh and BMW Group Malaysia managing director and CEO Hans de Visser, who later shared a word of encouragement to the audience to continue empowering women towards a better, more equitable future.
The evening closed with final song by Elvira, followed by a three-course meal prepared by Shangri-La Kuala Lumpur executive chef Scott Brands and his team. Over dinner, guests mingled before leaving with a special gift bag with Lancome's Advanced Génifique Youth Activating concentrate serum.
The Front & Female Awards 2023 in Malaysia is presented in partnership with BMW Malaysia, Sime Darby Property, Lancome, Johnnie Walker Blue Label, Whispering Angel, Royal Selangor, and Shangri-La Kuala Lumpur.
Credits
Photography: Daniel Adams
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Previously contributing to Esquire Malaysia, Expat Lifestyle and Newsweek, Tania oversees digital stories across Tatler’s key content pillars, also leading the Front & Female platform exploring issues and topics affecting women today.
