The woman who helped revolutionise the ethnic public relations industry has been nominated for a national award.

Founder of Sterling Media, Teji Singh has been nominated for the Media Professional of the Year Award at the forthcoming Asian Women of Achievement Awards.

Teji began her career in media when she was headhunted for the position of news anchor on the first Asian television channel in the UK, TV Asia.

She stayed with the channel for four years, as a fundamental contributor to TV Asia's growth from a modest channel into a global media brand that would shape and influence the Asian community for years to come - Zee TV.

Ready to master the next professional challenge, the proposition of a PR project by a business associate initiated the idea for Sterling Media. 13 years on, Teji has single-handedly built up Sterling Media into a globally recognised name, with its expanding portfolio of public, private and corporate clients and she is arguably one of the first women from an Ethnic minority background to set up a full service international communications agency in the UK, offering PR, marketing, advertising and events management.

In addition to this, the company has three specialist divisions: Film & Entertainment Marketing, Multi-Cultural & International Communications and Creative & Online.

Recently, Teji Singh was presented with the Special Award for Services to Media & Promoting Culture in Britain by Tony McNulty, Minister for Security and Counter-Terrorism, at a function organised by the British Sikh Association.

In January 2008, Teji Singh was invited to form part of a delegation of key community leaders, dignitaries and high profile guests to accompany Liam Byrne MP, Minister of State for Borders and Immigration, on his trip to India.

The role of the delegation was to objectively put forward their assessments of the changes on UK immigration and visa policy and the implications these will have for the communities involved.

Teji Singh said, "I am truly honoured and humbled to be recognised for my efforts in this way. It has been a challenging journey, on both a personal and professional level, to get to where I am today.

"There have been constant hurdles to overcome, barriers to break through, and boundaries to push forward."