75 artistes to receive one-time Sangeet Natak Akademi Amrit Award

New Delhi, Nov 25 (PTI) The Sangeet Natak Akademi on Friday announced a one-time 'Sangeet Natak Akademi Amrit Award' for 75 artistes.

The award is to honour those artistes above 75 years of age and haven't been accorded any national honour in their career, the Union Ministry of Culture said.

The General Council of Sangeet Natak Akademi, the National Academy of Music, Dance and Drama, New Delhi, at its meeting between November 6 and 8, unanimously selected the 75 artistes for the one-time award.

"The awardees so selected represent the nation as a whole, and belong to different states and Union Territories. Besides, these artists cover the different genres of the performing arts of India," the ministry said in a statement.

The list of awardees include Krishen Langoo (theatre and music) from Jammu & Kashmir, John Claro Fernandes (playwriting) from Goa, Mahabir Nayak (folk music and dance) from Jharkhand and Tsering Stanzin (folk music) from Ladakh.

The list also includes three artistes from Andhra Pradesh, two from Arunachal Pradesh and six from Maharashtra. Three artistes each from Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and two from Punjab have also been selected.

Four artistes each are from Bihar, Gujarat, Odisha, West Bengal and Manipur while five each are from Karnataka, Assam, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Kerala have been named in the list.

The award carries a purse of Rs 1 lakh, besides a 'Tamrapatra' and 'Angavastram'. PTI MAH SZM