If you’ve been on twitter for even a week, you’ve noticed the #twifi hashtag or the @twi_fi_awards handle. You’ve wondered what all the hoopla was.

Before we get to the details, I’d like to offer you a background picture.

Call it ‘luck by chance’ or ‘serendipity’ I have been involved with awards for a long time. I was in-charge of the green room at awards organized by an event management institute. I helped manage advertising awards, popularly known as Abby awards. In my professional career, right at the beginning, I was privileged to have backstage duty at the Screen awards ’08. Of course, my job at Filmfare entailed work on the Filmfare awards ’09 and ’10. Let’s not even get started on the number of awards I’ve attended.

As a seasoned awards-goer/organizer, I can tell you one thing. The common factor has always been star-power. Attendants come to watch their favourite stars, who, in turn come to perform. Television viewers  love to count off their A-list of stars. Nobody really remembers who won.

Of course, there is a credible jury in place. The deserving films, actors and technicians do win, most of the time. However, audience votes and polls also make room for ‘popular’ and ‘special’ awards, further increasing star power.

As regular people, we have nothing against awards. We enjoy watching them. We love listening to winning speeches. We even have our own bathroom versions. That’s besides the point. What’s important here is the deserving should be lauded. A lesser star shouldn’t be sidelined. A winner should rightfully be titled so. It should be an event where achievement is saluted.

So, to answer our own complaints and solve our own problems, a group of tweeple, have initiated a movement, the twi-fi-awards (Tweeple Film Awards).

The jury consists of the country’s best critics and bloggers. Whether you agree or not, reviews are often a deciding factor and critics’ opinions of importance. Bloggers, as we are aware, are the new opinion shapers. They take their freedom of speech seriously and only reach you with honesty.

The awards are democratic in nature: of the people, for the people, by the people. A tweeple jury will consist of ten bloggers, filtered from a list of 70 bloggers (nominated by the tweeple) and voted for by the tweeple.

To vote, you simply need to have a twitter handle and click on the link: http://twifi2010.in/

All your questions/procedures have been answered on the facebook page. Find it here. Tweet to the @twi_fi_awards handle if you have any more queries.

So, have fun, vote, attend. Be a part of your very own awards.

And, if you like my blog, find me on http://twifi2010.in/ and vote for me.