List of Sangeet Natak Akademi Awardees

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India’s performing arts tradition is one of the richest in the world, encompassing diverse forms of music, dance, and drama. Recognizing and honouring excellence in these fields is the central mission of the Sangeet Natak Akademi. Through its Fellowship and Awards, the Akademi celebrates artists whose lifelong dedication has shaped the nation’s cultural heritage.

The first award was presented in 1952, and it has continued to celebrate distinguished artists across the country, with the most recent awards conferred in 2023.

The Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship

The Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship is the highest honour conferred by the Akademi. It is awarded purely on the basis of merit and artistic excellence, without distinction of nationality, race, caste, religion, creed, or gender. The eligibility criteria ordinarily restrict consideration of individuals below the age of 50, ensuring that recipients represent sustained achievement and maturity in their field.

Recommendations for the Fellowship are made by existing fellows along with members of the Akademi’s General Council. This peer-based recognition system reinforces the credibility and prestige of the honour, as it is granted by those deeply rooted in the performing arts community.

The Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards have a legacy spanning more than seventy years. These awards represent the nation’s highest recognition for practitioners, gurus, and scholars in the performing arts. Interestingly, awards in Hindustani and Carnatic music were instituted in 1951, even before the formal establishment of the Akademi. These early honours were known as Presidential Awards.

With the formation of the Akademi, the awards were brought under its authority and renamed the Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards. The Presidential Awards of 1952 and 1953 were later incorporated into the official list of Akademi awardees, ensuring continuity in recognition.

Structure and Significance of the Awards

Currently, 41 awards are conferred annually. To date, more than 1,298 artists have been honoured for their exceptional contributions. Each award carries a purse of ₹1 lakh, a Tamrapatra (copper plaque), and an Angavastram. While the material components symbolize honour, the true value of the award lies in national recognition of artistic excellence and lifelong dedication to cultural preservation.

Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards 2023

Name

Specialization / Sub-field

Bombay Jayashri Ramnath

Carnatic Vocal

Kalapini Komkali

Hindustani Vocal

Vinod Kumar Dwivedi

Hindustani Vocal

Moinuddin Khan

Hindustani Instrumental (Sarangi)

Niladri Kumar

Hindustani Instrumental (Sitar)

Harvinder Kumar Sharma

Hindustani Instrumental (Sitar)

Kalinath Mishra

Hindustani Instrumental (Tabla)

H. K. Venkataram

Carnatic Instrumental (Violin)

Neyveli R. Narayanan

Carnatic Instrumental (Mridangam)

S. Sekhar

Carnatic Instrumental (Mridangam)

Shankar Sastry

Carnatic Vocal

Jayanti Sharma

Music for Dance

L. V. Gangadhara Sastry

Sugam Sangeet

Sangita Gosain

Odissi Music

Urmila Sathyanarayanan

Bharatanatyam

Pallavi Krishnan

Mohiniattam

Maddali Usha Gayatri

Kuchipudi

Snehaprava Samantray

Odissi

Bhaben Borbayan

Sattriya

Latasana Devi

Manipuri

Margi Vijayakumar

Kathakali

Jagdish Sundarlal Gangani

Kathak

Parikshit Mahato

Chhau

Nirupama & T. D. Rajendra

Creative & Experimental (Joint)

Anil Rastogi

Acting

Rajiv Verma

Acting

Anoop Joshi

Allied Theatre Arts (Lighting)

Sandeep Dutta

Allied Theatre Arts (Lighting)

Piyal Bhattacharya

Other Major Traditions (Sanskrit)

Pali Bhupinder Singh

Playwriting

Asif Ali Haider Khan

Playwriting

Rakesh Bhatt

Folk Theatre (Uttarakhand)

Zahoor Alam

Direction

Surinder Sharma

Direction

Helen Giri

Folk & Traditional (Meghalaya)

Abdul Gaffar Dar Kanihami

Folk Music (Jammu & Kashmir)

Bharat Sharma Vyas

Folk Music (Bihar)

Krishan Lal Sehgal

Folk Song (Himachal Pradesh)

Kanta Kashinath Gaude

Folk Music (Goa)

Swapan Mukhopadhyay

Folk Music (West Bengal)

Perini Prakash

Perini Sivatandavam

Gopalan Nair Venu

Overall Contribution

Gurpreet Singh Khalsa

Martial Arts (Gatka)

Jagdish Trivedi

Scholarship in Performing Arts

K. Pajanivel

Martial Arts (Silambam)

Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards 2022

Name

Notifications

Notifications

List of Sangeet Natak Akademi Awardees