Indira Naidoo

Indira Naidoo (born 1968 in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa) is an Australian consumer advocate and former television presenter and journalist. Naidoo is of Tamil descent.

She was educated in England, Zimbabwe [cite news |last = Tuohy | first = Wendy | date = July 28, 2002 | title = [http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2002/07/31/1027926913490.html Terms of Indira] | work = The Sun-Herald | accessdate = 2008-07-18] and at Launceston Church Grammar in Tasmania before matriculating as School Dux from Naracoorte High School in South Australia.

Naidoo completed a journalism degree at the South Australian College of Advanced Education (now the University of South Australia) and joined the Australian Broadcasting Corporation in Adelaide in 1990 as a news cadet. After several years as a political and industrial reporter, she went on to anchor ABC Weekend news and the 7.30 Report. She then moved to the ABC's "National Late Edition News" in Sydney where she developed a cult following as the ABC's youngest news host.

In 1997 she was headhunted to present SBS News' inaugural LATE NEWS which she hosted for three years covering the independence struggle in East Timor, the coups in Fiji and the Balkans war in Kosovo.

Indira Naidoo won the South Australian Justice Administration Award for Television in 1993, the Dalgety Award for Excellence in Rural Journalism in 1994 and the Better Hearing Australia (NSW Branch) Clear Speech Award in 1996.

Naidoo gained national prominence for her less serious appearances on "Club Buggery", and later on "The McFeast Show", "Good News Week", "The Fat", and Steve Abbott's variety series, "In Siberia Tonight". In September 2006 she appeared on Tony Martin's "Get This" radio show on Triple M.

Naidoo became the spokeswoman for "CHOICE", an Australian independent consumer watchdog, in 2006. She established the SHONKY awards for the worst consumer products - a highly-anticipated annual media event. [ [http://www.choice.com.au/viewPressRelease.aspx?id=105282&catId=100202&tid=100010&p=1 "Indira Naidoo joins CHOICE"] ] She has appeared on shows such as "A Current Affair" and "The 7.30 Report" in this capacity.

Indira recently co-presented the inaugural Asian Pacific Screen Awards [ [http://www.asiapacificscreenawards.com/news_room/media_releases/apsa_announces_award_ceremony_presenters_jack_thompson,_indira_naidoo_and_anjali_rao APSA Announces Award Ceremony Presenters: Jack Thompson, Indira Naidoo And Anjali Rao] ] with Australian screen legend Jack Thompson which was broadcast to 500 million people on CNN on November 17th 2007.

Naidoo is the cousin of actress Tharini Mudaliar [ [http://www.ausxip.com/one/tharini.html "BEHIND THE LINES"] ] and her sister, Manika, is a press secretary for Victorian children's affairs minister Maxine Morand.

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