Shillong Sept 14: Meghalaya Governor, Tathagata Roy gave away the Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar 2017 at the award ceremony held alongside the Festival of Music, Dance and Drama at U Soso Tham auditorium here on Friday.
The function was organised by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, New Delhi in collaboration with the Directorate of Arts and Culture, Meghalaya. Altogether 32 awardees were felicitated in recognition of their prowess in the field of music, dance and drama.
Speaking on the occasion, The Governor congratulated all the awardees and said that art is a celebration of the universal spirit of India.
With 60% of the population of the county falling under 35 years of age, the Governor said, India is a young nation and the youth are indeed the assets of the nation.
He expressed hope that the recognition given to the awardees will inspire them to work harder and strive for excellence.
Congratulating the Sangeet Natak Akademi for promoting the arts across the country, he urged the awardees to also take their talents further by way of sharing their skills and knowledge with the next generation, so that the rich traditions of India live on forever.
The Governor also paid rich tributes to Bharat Ratna Ustad Bismillah Khan, who brought the limelight on the Shennai thought his magnetic performances.
Chairman of Sangeet Natak Academy, Shekhar Sen, Director of Arts and Culture, Meghalaya Matsiewdor War Nongbri, along with a host of invitees were present at the award presentation ceremony.
The award ceremony was followed by performances by some of the awardees; Sawani Shende – Hindustani Vocal Music, Prasanna Venkatraman- Carnatic Vocal Music with Trivandrum N. Sampath in the Violin, Rimpa Siva – Hindustani Instrumental Music (Tabla), Bhavana Reddy – Kuchipudi and Vidha Lala – Kathak.
The five-day festival which will feature acclaimed artists of the country, will continue till September 18.
