From Nobel to Grammy winners: People who defined excellence in 2025

Maria Corina Machado's Peace Prize and Kendrick Lamar's Grammy triumph capture how 2025 honoured both democratic resistance and cultural reinvention

In a year marked by breakthroughs, bold voices and shifting global priorities, the world’s biggest honours, from the Nobels and Pulitzers to the Oscars, Grammys and International Booker, celebrated individuals whose work is reshaping politics, science, culture and the climate conversation. 

The 2025 awards season delivered headline-making moments: Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado winning the Nobel Peace Prize over US President Donald Trump; Beyoncé and Kendrick Lamar dominating the Grammys; Anora sweeping the Oscars; and Bengaluru-based writer Banu Mushtaq making history as the first Kannada author to win the International Booker. 

Let's look at the major international awards this year and who were the winners.

 

1. Nobel Prize

Nobel Prize 2025 (Image: Official website)

 

The Nobel Peace Prize went to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, sidelining US President Donald Trump’s much-publicised hopes. The Norwegian Nobel Committee cited her role in unifying a once-fractured opposition and leading non-violent resistance for a peaceful transition to democracy in Venezuela.

 

In science, Susumu Kitagawa, Richard Robson and Omar M Yaghi shared the chemistry prize for metal–organic frameworks – porous materials that can capture carbon dioxide, harvest water from desert air, store toxic gases and catalyse reactions. John Clarke, Michel H Devoret and John M Martinis received the physics prize for showing quantum mechanical effects in electrical circuits, paving the way for next-generation quantum technology.

 

Mary E Brunkow, Fred Ramsdell and Shimon Sakaguchi won the medicine prize for revealing how regulatory T cells prevent the immune system from attacking the body’s own tissues. In literature, Hungarian writer Laszlo Krasznahorkai was honoured for a visionary body of work that finds the power of art amid apocalyptic terror. Joel Mokyr, Philippe Aghion and Peter Howitt took the economics prize for explaining how innovation and ‘creative destruction’ drive long-run growth.

2. Oscars Awards 2025

97th Oscars acting winners - Adrien Brody, Mikey Madison, Zoe Saldaña, Kieran Culkin (Photo: Oscars website)

 

At the 97th Academy Awards, Anora emerged as the year’s defining film, winning Best Picture, Best Director and Best Original Screenplay for Sean Baker, and Best Actress for Mikey Madison. The Brutalist powered Adrien Brody to Best Actor and picked up prizes for cinematography and original score, while Dune: Part Two was recognised for sound and visual effects, underscoring the enduring pull of big-screen spectacle.

3. Pulitzer Prize 2025

Pulitzer Prize (Photo: Pulitzer website)

 

The 2025 Pulitzer Prizes honoured tough reporting and ambitious storytelling. ProPublica won the Public Service award for exposing deaths of pregnant women caused by vague abortion law exceptions, while The Washington Post took Breaking News Reporting for coverage of the Trump assassination attempt. The New York Times was recognised for international reporting on Sudan.

4. International Booker Prize 2025

Author Banu Mushtaq (left) and translator Deepa Bhasthi, winners of the International Booker Prize 2025.

 

In books, the International Booker Prize went to Indian writer, activist and lawyer Banu Mushtaq for Heart Lamp, translated from Kannada by Deepa Bhasthi, the first Kannada-language work to win the award. Her stories trace the lives of Muslim women in southern India.

5. Grammy Awards 2025

67th Grammy Awards winners Kendrick Lamar and Beyoncé (Photo: Getty Images)

 

At the 67th Grammy Awards, Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us” won Record and Song of the Year, while Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter took Album of the Year and Chappell Roan was named Best New Artist.

6. Goldman Environmental Prize 2025

Goldman Environmental Prize winners 2025 (Photo: Official website)

 

The Goldman Environmental Prize highlighted grassroots defenders of land, water and communities. Among the 2025 winners were Tunisia’s Semia Gharbi, who exposed illegal waste trafficking between Italy and Tunisia, Mongolia’s Batmunkh Luvsandash, who fought to protect wildlife from mining, and Peru’s Mari Luz Canaquiri Murayari, who won a rights-of-nature ruling for the Marañón River.