Eugeni Sallent and Carles Vilarrubí, posthumously honored at the DRAC awards

BarcelonaRAC1 is enjoying a sweet moment, having chained together three waves of the EGM where it has surpassed one million listeners, but this Monday it also wanted to look back and raise a symbolic toast to two of the architects of the station, who died in recent months. These are two of the co-founders of Grupo Godó's radio station, Carles Vilarrubí and Eugeni Sallent, the latter of whom was also its first director. Thus, the Tots Som 1 award – the station's slogan and which previously decided the audience – changes its modality this year to present this posthumous recognition.

The Oriol Martorell hall at the Auditori de Barcelona hosted a gala that, presented by Marc Giró, was quick, effective, and above all, an ode to the medium. There wasn't much intrigue – the names of the chosen ones had been revealed by the station in the morning – but there was a desire to celebrate a vision and a way of doing things, with the main radio presenters involved in the event. Jordi Basté and Toni Clapés were in charge of honoring two of the station's promoters, both united by the clear idea of launching a station that would be different from everything that already existed.

The families of Sallent and Vilarrubí collected the award. The son of the former explained that he “deeply loved radio and this profession”, while the son of the latter explained that his father, a lawyer by profession, had maintained “a love affair with radio that he would never abandon”. The moment concluded with an emotional “Long live RAC1 and long live radio in Catalan”.

On the other hand, the Talent award has gone to Álvaro Cervantes. The former this year signs two memorable performances: that of his character in the film Sorda, for which he has won the Goya for best supporting actor, and that of the sole survivor of a tragedy in the mountains in the film Balandrau: vent salvatge. Nora Navas has been presented with the Excellence award, for recent roles such as that of the psychologist Anaïs López in the series Yo, adicto or that of Eva, the woman who feels the need to fall in love again just after turning 50, in the film Mi amiga, Eva. The actress, nominated for the Goyas, Gaudís, Forqués and Feroz awards, explained that Javier Cámara had affectionately told her, “You will walk the red carpet at all the ceremonies, but you won't win a thing”. And she ironically added: “Well, look, Javier, an excellence award!”

Also on the stage front, La Cubana received the award for career achievement, after 45 years of being a breeding ground for actors and actresses with their unmistakable comedic style, such as the recent L’amor venia amb taxi. And the playwright Clàudia Cedó has won the Contribution to Well-being award for initiating the project Escenaris Especials, which for over twenty years has been dedicated to making theatre with people at risk of social exclusion, as seen in the play Mare de sucre, about a woman with an intellectual disability who wants to be a mother and which will now be adapted for cinema.

The voice of the year, according to the jury, has been Oriol Cardona, the first Catalan to win a gold medal at the Winter Olympic Games. Awards also went to the chefs of the three-Michelin-starred restaurant Disfrutar (for innovation), the Primavera Sound festival (for best cultural project) and the writer Gil Pratsobrerroca (Revelation award) for his literary debut El joc del silenci, a rural thriller with over 25,000 copies sold.

The list of winners is completed by Afghan activist Zuhal Sherzad, who risked her life to confront what the UN has defined as the “gender apartheid” that women in Afghanistan are experiencing due to the Taliban regime. Sherzad has coordinated a network of underground and clandestine schools for the education and vocational training of girls and women, which is why religious fundamentalists targeted her and she had to seek exile.

His was one of the most emotional moments of the gala. After delivering some acknowledgments in Catalan, the activist explained that radio allows "giving soul to the stories we cannot forget". After dedicating the award to "all Afghan women who are resisting a regime that tries to erase them from society", she surprisingly concluded by announcing that she was carrying her pistol and would show it. Sherzad then took out a pen, which she displayed to the audience. "This is the only weapon we have."

The party ended with Mari Trinis Reunidas de Catalunya, a group of pubilles with a cabaret air and drag aesthetic who began to undress their outfits while singing a translated version of Yo no soy esa, with the mountains of Montserrat in the background. The performance, as risky as it was successful, was RAC1's umpteenth way of demonstrating its ability to break away from orthodoxy and triumph.