Monday 10 April 2023, Bengaluru, India
The Padma Awards ceremony took place on 5th, April, Wednesday at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. The awards ceremony saw many people from various fields who have contributed in some manner to make the country proud on the national and international stages. People who have done exceptional service to the nation receive the award at the hands of the President of India.
The recent edition of the Padma Awards took place at the Rashtrapati Bhawan in New Delhi, and some notable figures were called to receive the highest civilian award in the country. Amongst all the recipients of the Padma Awards, notable figures were present in the Padma Shri Award category. No doubt, every recipient of the Padma Awards is a distinguished figure, but some names caught the viewer’s eye.
Actress Raveena Tandon received the Padma Shri Award from the hands of President Draupadi Murmu on Wednesday. She was delighted and couldn’t deny her joy upon receiving one of the highest civilian awards in the country. Her work and dedication in the field of Cinema and Art are what made her a perfect candidate for the Padma Shri.
Flying with joy, Raveena expressed her happiness in words by saying, “Honoured and grateful. Thank you so much, Government of India, for acknowledging my contributions, my life, my passion, and (my) purpose — cinema and the arts that allowed me to contribute not only to the film industry but beyond. I thank all those who guided me through this journey of Art and Craft of Cinema — all those who held my hand through it, and all those who watched me from their place above. I owe this to my father.”
Apart from the on-screen celebrity receiving the Padma Shri, we also witnessed an off-screen celebrity take center stage. Oscar award-winning song Naatu Naatu’s composer MM Keeravani, Raveena Tandon, and Rasheed Ahmed Quadrireceived his Padma Shri Award from the hands of President of India Draupadi Murmu for his brilliant work in the field of music.
Also receiving one of the highest civilian awards were Indian music composer Ustad Zakir Hussain and singer Vani Jairam. Their extraordinary contributions to society through music and art received respect in the figure of the Padma Shri.
Another name that caught the limelight was that of the Bidriware artist from Karnataka, Rasheed Ahmed Quadri. He has been trying to receive the award for the last 10 years and has now succeeded in his mission. He revealed that he was not hopeful of receiving the highest civilian award once the new government of the Bhartiya Janta Party came to power, but PM Modi proved him wrong. “I tried for 10 years to get this award. When the BJP govt came, I thought I would not get this award because BJP never gives anything to Muslims, but PM Modi proved me wrong by choosing me for this award,” Quadri was quoted as speaking to ANI. Quadri is talented, skillful, and a master craftsman who invented many Bidriware articles and trained hundreds of artists to become a master craftsman like him.
“I never expected the Union government to recognize the six-century-old exquisite Bidriware and honor me with the Padma Shri. I could not believe it until one of the officials from the Union government rang up and informed me about the national award,” Quadri told the South First outlet media outlet.
Sources – Timesnownews, Timesnownews
