Cover Dato’ Adeeba Kamarulzaman at Tatler Ball 2021 (Photo: Apis Shah/Tatler Malaysia)
Dato’ Adeeba Kamarulzaman at Tatler Ball 2021 (Photo: Apis Shah/Tatler Malaysia)
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Take a trip down memory lane as we revisit five noteworthy men and women honoured at past Tatler Balls in Malaysia
Ready for Tatler Ball 2023? As we count down the days to this highly anticipated black-tie charity Christmas ball at The St Regis Kuala Lumpur, we find ourselves reflecting on the incredible individuals who have graced the Tatler Ball stage over the years, from influential Malaysian activists to sports icons and corporate heads who have achieved so much in their respective spheres of influence.
See also: 3 charitable initiatives and how you can donate at Tatler Ball 2023
Whether it’s celebrating lifetime achievements or an influential individual making significant strides in a hard-to-break-in industry, our past ball awardees include Malaysian royals, inspirational entrepreneurs, and even former premiers—and such is the breadth of incredible people who are still part of the Tatler community today. From globally-renowned infectious disease specialist Professor Dato’ Adeeba Kamarulzaman to Gen.T honouree and former Fave CEO Joel Neoh, here are five Tatler Ball awardees who are still making waves today.
Ganesh Muren: Tatler Ball 2017
Above Photo: Tatler Malaysia
Above Photo: Ganesh Muren/Facebook
Photo: Tatler Malaysia
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The young founder of Saora Industries made a name for himself in 2014 when he founded this incredible social enterprise to give rural communities in Sarawak access to safe drinking water via solar-powered water infiltration systems. The deserving winner of Tatler's Force for Good award at the Malaysia Tatler 20th Anniversary Ball in 2017 has not lost his momentum for a second.
See also: Ganesh Muren Answers The Shortage Of Ventilators In Hospitals With Ethovent
This year, he successfully completed his MBA at MIT Sloan School of Management, having received a scholarship from the YTL Foundation. Chances are that today, you'll still find this energetic entrepreneur with his sleeves rolled up, working with his team to empower orang asli communities more sustainably in Malaysia as he has been doing for the past 10 years. This year, the former Gen.T honouree was also invited to spend a month in Mozambique to study and initiate rural electrification, water and sanitation projects that will affect the lives of some 52,000 villagers in the East African country.
Professor Dato’ Dr Adeeba Kamarulzaman: Tatler Ball 2021
Above Photo: Tatler Malaysia
Photo: Tatler Malaysia
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2021 was not an easy year for anyone, especially for Professor Dato’ Adeeba Kamarulzaman. Managing between the demands of a Covid-19 task force at Universiti Malaya Medical Centre (then one of the major quarantine centres for Covid patients in Klang Valley) to being appointed a member of the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) Science Council in April of that same year, Adeeba was given Tatler’s Power Award 2021 in recognition of her trailblazing achievements in healthcare.
This renowned infectious disease expert has since been named president and pro vice chancellor at Monash University Malaysia and is also the chairperson of the Rose Foundation, an internationally award-winning Malaysian NGO dedicated to eradicating cervical cancer, as well as the Malaysian AIDS Foundation.
Don't miss: Professor Dato’ Dr Adeeba named National Academic Figure of 2023
Joel Neoh: Tatler Ball 2017
Neoh in 2017 (Photo: Tatler Malaysia)
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The name Joel Neoh is well known in startup circles in the Asian tech scene. The ambitious young CEO was honoured with Tatler’s Entrepreneur Par Excellence award at the Tatler Ball 28th Anniversary in Malaysia, best known for disrupting the fintech arena and paving the way for mobile payments through platforms like FavePay.
This year, the Fave co-founder stepped down from his position as CEO of the fintech company in 2023, joining Hong Kong-based Prenetics, a genomic and diagnostic testing startup co-founded by fellow Gen.T honouree Danny Yeung. Neoh is also the managing director of the company’s consumer health business, CircleDNA.
Zaida Ibrahim: Tatler Ball 2016
Zaida at Tatler Ball 2016
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This stylish mum of two never fails to impress us with her effortless grace and impeccable style.
In 2016, Zaida was named Tatler’s Woman on the Rise at that year’s ball–the same year she was crowned with the title of Asia’s Most Stylish in Malaysia. You’ll likely find this stunning entrepreneur and her fashionable sisters at the top beauty and fashion events around town. The client portfolio manager for Aham Capital Asset Management (formerly known as Affin Hwang Asset Management) is a fashionista by night and a formidable banker by day–is there anything she can’t do?
Dzameer Dzulkifli: Tatler Ball 2018
Above Dzameer making his speech at Tatler Ball 2018 (Photo: Tatler Malaysia)
Dzameer making his speech at Tatler Ball 2018 (Photo: Tatler Malaysia)
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The former co-founder and managing director of educational non-profit Teach For Malaysia was honoured with Tatler’s Force for Good award for doing his part to elevate education in Malaysia and promote project-based learning that is grounded in solving problems in the local community.
Now a father of two, Dzameer is currently attached to Indonesian technology company Metranet as GovTech programme lead, in reference to GovTech Edu, a technology organisation that aims to accelerate the transformation of Indonesia’s educational landscape through technology. In this role, he works to support the development of a teacher-focused platform and integration with a national public education system. This year, he was also conferred an honorary doctorate in Engineering from Heriot-Watt University Malaysia.
Tatler Ball 2023 is proudly sponsored by Chopard, Oppo, BMW Malaysia, The St Regis Kuala Lumpur, The Exchange TRX, Bacha Coffee, Rituals Malaysia, Pavilion Collection, Beauty & Co., Armani Beauty, Hennessy, Moet, Minuty, Royal Selangor, Heritouch Gallery, and The Datai Langkawi.
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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.
