Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards and Fellowships

March 6, 2024

President of India, Smt. Droupadi Murmu, will confer the prestigious Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards (Akademi Puraskar) for the years 2022 and 2023 to 94 eminent artists. The awards are given in various fields of performing arts, including music, dance, drama, folk & tribal arts, puppetry, and allied theatre art forms.

In addition to the Akademi Awards, President Murmu will also bestow the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship (Akademi Ratna) to 7 eminent artists (one joint fellowship). The Akademi Fellowship is the highest honour given to artists in the field of performing arts for their exceptional contributions to their respective art forms. The fellowship is a prestigious and rare honour, with a maximum of 40 recipients at any given time.

Significance of the Akademi Awards

The Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards have been conferred since 1952 and symbolize the highest standard of excellence and achievement in the performing arts. These awards not only recognize the recipients’ exceptional work but also acknowledge their sustained individual contributions to their respective fields.

The Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship is the highest honour conferred by Sangeet Natak Akademi without distinction of nationality, race, caste, religion, creed, or sex. The criteria restricts any person below the age of 50 to ordinarily be considered for the honour. The recommendations are received from the current fellows along with the members of the General Council of the Akademi.

The Akademi Fellowship carries a purse money of Rs. 3,00,000/- (Rupees three lakhs), while the Akademi Award carries a purse money of Rs. 1,00,000/- (Rupees one lakh). In addition to the monetary rewards, the recipients will also receive a Tamrapatra and Angavastram as a symbol of their achievement.

Sangeet Natak Akademi

Sangeet Natak Akademi (The National Academy of Music, Dance and Drama) is the national level academy for performing arts set up by the Government of India. It was set up by the Indian education ministry in 1952 and became functional the following year, with the appointment of its first chairman, Dr. P. V. Rajamannar. Dr Rajendra Prasad, the first President of India, inaugurated it on 28 January 1953 in a special function held in the Parliament House. The academy’s Fellowship and Award are considered very prestigious.

The academy functions as the apex body of the performing arts in the country to preserve and promote the vast cultural heritage of India expressed in music, dance and drama. It also works with governments and art academies in states and territories of the country.

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