Coimbatore, (Tamil Nadu) [India], May 3 : Social entrepreneur Arunachalam Muruganantham, who is famously known as the 'Padman,' on Sunday claimed that he has been listed as a nominee for the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize.
"I couldn't believe it at first... For the Nobel Prize, you cannot submit your name, nor can your friends or family. It has to be a third party... A Dean from Aravind Eye Hospital of Pondicherry and American teams working there submitted my name for the Nobel... It was accepted within 24 hours... I'm really proud...", Muruganantham told ANI.
There are 287 candidates nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for 2026, of which 208 are individuals, and 79 are organisations, as per the official website of The Nobel Prize.
"However, the deliberations and assessments do not take place in a vacuum: for each candidate and topic, it seeks evaluations from some of the world's leading experts, from academics with deep knowledge of the specific areas in which the candidates are engaged. The committee also review a large selection of scholarly articles and other background material," the website added.
Arunachalam Muruganantham is a social activist from Tamil Nadu who introduced low-cost sanitary pads to villages in India. He was also the inspiration behind Akshay Kumar-starrer 'PadMan'.
Directed by R Balki, the film also featured Radhika Apte and Sonam Kapoor. 'PadMan' also went on to win the National Award for Best Film.