In a landmark gathering that heralds the triumph of India’s rich cultural heritage, the General Council of the Sangeet Natak Akademi, the National Academy of Music, Dance, and Drama, has bestowed its highest honors upon the stalwarts of performing arts. At its recent meeting in New Delhi on February 21 and 22, 2024, the Akademi has unanimously elected six eminent personalities as Akademi Fellows (Akademi Ratna) and named ninety-two artists as recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards (Akademi Puraskar) for the years 2022 and 2023, across various disciplines of the performing arts.
The Akademi Fellowship, known for its prestige and exclusivity, is currently limited to 40 living legends, making it a rare honor that celebrates lifetime achievement and contributions to the Indian performing arts. The selected Fellows and awardees, hailing from diverse states and union territories, represent the national spectrum and cover the entire gamut of performing arts forms including music, dance, theatre, and more.
Additionally, the Akademi has selected 80 young artists for the Sangeet Natak Akademi Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar for the years 2022 and 2023, highlighting the future torchbearers of India’s cultural legacy. This award, carrying a purse of Rs. 25,000, a Tamrapatra, and an Angavastram, recognizes young talents excelling in the realm of performing arts.
The Akademi Fellows and Award recipients have not only demonstrated unparalleled mastery over their art forms but have also played pivotal roles in enriching India’s cultural landscape. The Fellowship carries a purse of Rs. 3,00,000, while the Akademi Award winners receive Rs. 1,00,000, along with a Tamrapatra and Angavastram, marking their indelible contribution to the arts.
The honorees will be officially conferred with these prestigious awards by the Chairman of the Sangeet Natak Akademi in a special ceremony. Since its inception in 1952, the Akademi Awards have celebrated excellence and achievement in the performing arts, recognizing sustained individual work and significant contributions.
The Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards, while a beacon of honor in the Indian performing arts landscape, have not been without their controversies in recent years. Many artists and members of the art community have voiced concerns over deserving talents being overlooked, while others, perceived as less deserving, have been selected for these prestigious awards. This discord has led to calls for a more transparent and equitable procedure in the nomination and selection process, with allegations of opacity and decisions being swayed by certain lobbies. The growing unrest within the art fraternity underscores the need for the Ministry of Culture to address these serious concerns. There is a pressing demand for the formulation of a new, unbiased, and transparent procedure that ensures the integrity of the selection process, making it truly reflective of merit and excellence in the vast and diverse field of Indian performing arts.
The awards will be conferred by the Hon’ble President of India in a special investiture ceremony, paying homage to the luminaries of the Indian performing arts. The list of distinguished artists selected for the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship, Awards, and the Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar is a testament to the vibrant diversity and richness of India’s performing arts traditions.
Fellows
1. Vinayak Khedekar
2. R. Visweswaran
3. Sunayana Hazarilal
4. Raja & Radha Reddy
5. Dulal Roy
6. D.P. Sinha
Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards (Akademi Puruskar) for the year 2022
Field of Activity: Music
1. Devaki Pandit Nambeear- Hindustani Vocal
2. Harvinder Singh – Hindustani Vocal
3. Dharamnath Mishra – Hindustani Instrumental-Harmonium
4. Basant Kabra – Hindustani Instrumental –Sarod
5. Maharajapuram Ramachandran – Carnatic Vocal
6. Manda Sudharani – Carnatic Vocal
7. Jayanthi Kumaresh – Carnatic Instrumental- Veena
8. Vinukonda Subrahmanyam – Carnatic Instrumental – Thavil
9. Purushottam Upadhyay – Creative & Experimental Music
10. Osman Mir – Creative & Experimental Music
11. Sapam Kullabi Singh – Other Major Traditions of Music- Nata Pung
12. Sitaram Singh – Other Major Traditions of Music- Sugam Sangeet
Field of Activity : Dance
1. Manjula Ramaswamy – Bharatanatyam
2. Nalini and Kamalini Asthana – Kathak
3. Kalamandalam Balasubrahmaniyam – Kathakali
4. S. Noyonshakhi Devi – Manipuri
5. Bhagavatula Sethuram – Kuchipudi
6. Niranjan Rout – Odissi
7. Gobinda Saikia – Sattriya
8. Kala Vijayan – Mohiniattam
9. Sadhucharan Mahato – Chhau
10. Bharat Sharma – Creative & Experimental Dance
11. Karuna Borah – Other Major Traditions of Dance and Dance Theatre- Ankiya Bhawan
12. Pusthakam Ramaa – Music for Dance
Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards (Akademi Puruskar) for the year 2023
Field of Activity: Music
1. Kalapini Komkali – Hindustani Vocal
2. Vinod Kumar Dwivedi – Hindustani Vocal
3. Harvinder Kumar Sharma – Hindustani Instrumental- Sitar
4. Moinuddin Khan, Rajasthan – Hindustani Instrumental – Sarangi
5. Bombay Jayashri Ramnath – Carnatic Vocal
6. Shankar Sastry Carnatic – Vocal
7. Neyveli Narayanan – Carnatic Instrumental- Mridangam
8. H.K. Venkataram – Carnatic Instrumental – Violin
9. S. Shekhar – Creative & Experimental Music
10. Niladri Kumar – Creative & Experimental Music
11. L V Gangadhara Sastry – Other Major Traditions of Music
12. Sangita Gosain – Other Major Traditions of Music- Odissi Music
Field of Activity : Dance
1. Urmila Sathyanarayanan – Bharatanatyam
2. Jagdish Gangani – Kathak
3. Margi Vijayakumaran – Kathakali
4. Latasana Devi – Manipuri
5. Maddali Usha Gayatri – Kuchipudi
6. Snehaprava Samantaray – Odissi
7. Bhaben Borbayan – Sattriya
8. Pallavi Krishnan – Mohiniattam
9. Parikshit Mahato – Chhau
10. Nirupama & Rajendra – Creative & Experimental Dance
11. Perini Prakash Other – Major Traditions of Dance and Dance Theatre- Periniattam
12. Kalinath Mishra – Music for Dance
Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar for the year 2022
Field of Activity: Music
1. Samit Mallick – Hindustani Vocal
2. Samarth Janve – Hindustani Vocal
3. Sangeet Mishra – Hindustani Instrumental– Sarangi
4. Partho Roy Choudhury – Hindustani Instrumental – Santoor
5. Gayatri K Carnatic – Vocal
6. Sweta Prasad – Carnatic Vocal
7. B. AnanthaKrishnan – Carnatic Instrumental –Violin
8. Sahana S.V – Carnatic Instrumental – Veena
9. Manoj Rai – Creative & Experimental Music
10. Nandini Purab Gujar – Other Major Traditions of Music (Sugam-
Sangeet)
Field of Activity: Dance
1. Mandakranta Roy – Bharatanatyam
2. Kadam Saurinbhai Parikh – Kathak
3. Urmika Maibam – Manipuri
4. T.Reddi Lakshmi – Kuchipudi
5. Arupa Gayatri Panda – Odissi
6. Dimpee Baishya – Sattriya
7. Akshara M Das – Mohiniattam
8. Pradyumna Kumar Mohanta – Chhau
9. Mingma Dorjee Lepcha – Creative & Experimental Dance
10. Aparna Nangiar – Other Major Traditions of Dance and Dance
Theatre (Nangiarkoothu)
Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar for the year 2023
Field of Activity: Music
1. Anuja Zokarkar – Hindustani Vocal
2. Monica Soni – Hindustani Vocal
3. Rishi Shankar Upadhyay – Hindustani Instrumental– Pakhawaj
4. Sarang Kulkarni – Hindustani Instrumental – Sarod
5. S. R. Vinay Sharva – Carnatic Vocal
6. Ramakrishna Murthy – Carnatic Vocal
7. Akshay Anantapadmanabhan – Carnatic Instrumental –Mridangam
8. Saikhom Pinky Devi – Creative & Experimental Music
9. Satyavathi Chauhan – Creative & Experimental Music
10. Nagesh Adgaonkar – Other Major Traditions of Music (Abhang)
Field of Activity: Dance
1. Apoorva Jayaraman – Bharatanatyam
2. Meghranjani Medhi – Kathak
3. Kalamandalam Vipin (Vipis V.S) – Kathakali
4. Pukhrambam Reepa Devi – Manipuri
5. M. Surendra Nadh – Kuchipudi
6. Debasish Pattnaik – Odissi
7. Mukunda Saikia – Sattriya
8. Vidyamol Pradeep- Mohiniattam
9. Sunita Mahato – Chhau
10. Venkateshwaran Kuppuswamy – Music for Dance
