Vir Das wins: What are the Emmy Awards and their different types?

The International Emmy Awards are different from the Primetime Emmy Awards, which are commonly referred to as “the Emmys”.

Vir Das poses in the press room with the Emmy for Best Comedy for "Vir Das: Landing" at the 51st International Emmy Awards at the New York Hilton Midtown on Monday, Nov. 20, 2023, in New York. (AP/PTI)

Written by: Alind Chauhan

3 min readNew DelhiNov 23, 2023 11:16 AM IST First published on: Nov 22, 2023 at 12:44 PM IST

Comedian Vir Das won an International Emmy Award for his Netflix show Vir Das: Landing on Monday. He shared the award with the British series Derry Girls season 3. Das is the first Indian to win in the comedy category.

Meanwhile, producer, filmmaker, and co-founder of Balaji Telefilms Ekta Kapoor won this year’s Directorate Award, which is given to individuals or organisations for outstanding contributions to international television.

However, the International Emmy Awards are different from the Primetime Emmy Awards — one of the most talked about award events and commonly referred to as “the Emmys”. Here is a look at different kinds of Emmy Awards, who gives them, and the history of the awards.

First, what are the Emmy Awards?

The Emmy Awards are the most renowned accolades given to television and emerging media performances. Unlike Oscars and Golden Globe awards, they aren’t given for films.

When were the Emmy Awards launched?

The Emmy Awards were conceived in 1948 and the first ceremony took place on January 25, 1949. A total of six awards were presented, such as the Most Outstanding Television Personality and Most Popular Television Program.

What are the different kinds of Emmy Awards?

Apart from the International Emmy Awards and the Primetime Emmy Awards, the Emmys are also given in the following categories: daytime, sports, news and documentary, technology and engineering, and regional, according to a report by Vox.

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While Primetime Emmy Awards honour television shows produced only in America and aired during primetime, International Emmy Awards are for international shows. Daytime Emmy Awards are given to American shows aired during late-morning and afternoon. Regional Emmy Awards are for regional television markets, including state-to-state programming, local news and locally produced shows.

Who gives the Emmy awards?

These awards are given by three sister organisations. First is the Television Academy, which administers the Primetime Emmy Awards. Second is the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, which oversees daytime, sports, news and documentary categories. Third is the International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, which is responsible for International Emmys.

Each organisation maintains its own membership of television professionals who vote and decide who will get the award.

What does the name ‘Emmy’ stand for?

The word “Emmy” doesn’t stand for anything and only refers to the award. According to the Emmy Awards website, initially, it was supposed to be named “Immy,” which was “a nickname for the image-orthicon camera tube instrumental in the technical development of television.”

However, it was later modified to a more “feminine” name, “Emmy”, because the award statuette “depicts the winged ‘muse of art uplifting the electron of science’,” the website added.