The Sangeet Natak Academy Uttar Pradesh, which works to preserve, promote, and spread awareness of music, dance, theatre, and folk arts in the state, has announced its Academy Awards.
On the occasion, Prof. Jayant Khot, Chairman of the Academy, stated that the awards recognise artists who have made significant contributions to preserving and promoting Uttar Pradesh’s rich cultural heritage. The Academy has announced awards for the four-year period from 2021 to 2024. Alongside these, artists who have excelled in theatre and stage arts will also be honoured with the B M Shah Award and the Safdar Hashmi Award.
For 2021, the awardees include Pt Deenanath Mishra (classical singing), Shrikant Vaishya (folk singing), Prabhu Dayal (Nakkara playing, Kanpur), and Jawahar Lal (Shehnai, Varanasi). In theatre, Bhoomikeshwar Singh will be honoured for direction, Jagmohan Rawat for technical lighting, Rajkumar Srivastava for Nautanki direction, and Vijay Pandit for playwriting. Mohan Swaroop Bhatia (Mathura) and Mala Hombal (Varanasi) have been selected for art promotion, while Bharatanatyam dancer Pratibha Sharma (Mathura, Vrindavan) will also be recognised. The Safdar Hashmi Award for 2021 goes to Manoj Kumar Mishra (Rewa) and the B M Shah Award to Satish Anand (Delhi).
For 2022, awards include Anand Kumar Malik (classical singing) and Madhuri Sharma (folk singing, Mathura). Pt Anuj Mishra (Lucknow) is recognised for Kathak dance, Shashikant Pathak for Pakhawaj, and Pankaj Kumar Srivastava (Prayagraj) for Tabla. Other awardees include Sunil Pawagi (Guitar), Mohan Lal Kunwar (Flute), Manju Kaushal (theatre acting), and Meraj Alam (puppetry). In theatre and literature, Vijay Shankar Mishra (Varanasi) and Padmakant Sharma (Sitapur) are selected, while the Safdar Hashmi Award goes to Rajesh Singh (New Delhi) and the B M Shah Award to Kamal Jain (Bhopal).
For 2023, honourees include Dr Ramshankar (classical singing), Manoj Gupta (light music), Rakesh Srivastava (folk singing), and Dr Akanksha Srivastava (Kathak dance, Lucknow). Tabla and Flute awards go to Anoop Banerjee and Chetan Kumar Joshi, respectively. In theatre, Rajkumar Upadhyay will be recognised for direction, Sanjay Degalurkar for acting, Uma Trigunayat for music and dance writing, Dr Omendra Kumar for art promotion, and Arjundas Kesari for art criticism. The Safdar Hashmi Award goes to Ajay Kumar (Ghaziabad) and the B M Shah Award to Ravishankar Khare (Gorakhpur).
For 2024, the awards will honour Ritesh Rajneesh Mishra (classical singing), Mukta Chatterjee (light music), Ramasth Pandey (folk singing, Alha), and Sugam Singh Shekhawat (folk dance). Other awardees include Mangal Prasad (Dukkad), Sukhdev Mishra (Violin), and Rajesh Shah (Sitar, Varanasi). In theatre, Sushma Sharma will be recognised for direction, Ravikant Shukla Shibbu for acting, Rajesh Pandit for art promotion, and Shashiprabha Tiwari for art criticism. The Safdar Hashmi Award for 2024 goes to Shubhdeep Raha (Lucknow) and the B M Shah Award to Sanjay Mehta (Bhopal).
Prof. Jayant Khot stated that the Academy will soon organise a special ceremony to formally present the awards and honour all selected artists.
Nurturing Creativity – Keekli Charitable Trust, Shimla
