Shivkumar Sharma awarded 2015 Aditya Vikram Birla Kala Shikhar Award

Santoor maestro Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma was presented with 2015 Aditya Vikram Birla Kala Shikhar Award for life time achievement.
The prestigious award was bestowed upon him by Maharashtra Governor C Vidyasagar Rao in Mumbai, Maharashtra.

About Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma

• Born: January 13, 1938 in Jammu and Kashmir.
• He is instrumental for making the Santoor a popular Classical Instrument which is folk instrument from Jammu and Kashmir.
• As a master instrumentalist of the Santoor he had recorded his first solo album in 1960.
• Later in 1967, he teamed up with flautist Hariprasad Chaurasia and Brij Bhushan Kabra to produce a concept album Call of the Valley. This album was one of the greatest hits in Indian Classical Music.
• He has composed music for numerous Hindi films and made his debut background music in Hindi film Jhanak Jhanak Payal Baje (1956).
• Awards and Honours: He is recipient of Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (1986), Padma Shri (1991) and Padma Vibhushan (2001).

About Aditya Vikram Birla Kala Shikhar Award

• The award has been instituted in 1996 by the Sangit Kala Kendra headed by Rajashree Birla.
• Few of the past recipients of the award are Lata Mangeshkar, Pt Bhimsen Joshi, Pt Jasraj, Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra, Pt Ram Narayan, M F Hussain etc.
• The Sangit Kala Kendra was founded in 1973 by late industrialist Mr Aditya Vikram Birla to encourage and nurture the various visual and performing arts.

Month: Current Affairs - November, 2015