IndianGaurav

Heroes in Art

Showing 1–24 of 254 heroes

AK

A K C Natarajan

A Carnatic clarinet maestro from Tiruchirappalli, hailed as 'Clarionet Everest', who has performed since 1946, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2022.

  • Padma Shri 2022
  • Tamil Nadu
AP

Achyut Palav

A Mumbai calligrapher who founded India's first calligraphy school and champions Indian scripts, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2025.

  • Padma Shri 2025
  • Maharashtra
Portrait of Adwaita Charan Gadanayak

Adwaita Charan Gadanayak

An Odisha-born sculptor known for the National Police Memorial and for leading the National Gallery of Modern Art, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2025.

  • Padma Shri 2025
  • Odisha
AH

Ahmed Hussain and Mohammed Hussain

Jaipur brothers who have sung ghazals together for over six decades, with some 80 albums, jointly honoured with the Padma Shri in 2023.

  • Padma Shri 2023
  • Rajasthan
AK

Ajay Kumar Mandavi

A self-taught Gond wood carver from Kanker who teaches carving to prisoners and to people who have left Maoist violence, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2023.

  • Padma Shri 2023
  • Mann Ki Baat #97
  • Chhattisgarh
President Ram Nath Kovind presenting the Padma Shri to Ajita Srivastava at Rashtrapati Bhavan, 2022

Ajita Srivastava

A Mirzapur singer and teacher who kept kajri, the monsoon songs of eastern Uttar Pradesh, alive, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2022. She died in 2024.

  • Padma Shri 2022
  • Uttar Pradesh
Portrait of Ajith Kumar

Ajith Kumar

A Tamil film star known for his privacy and discipline, who has acted in films since 1992, honoured with the Padma Bhushan in 2025.

  • Padma Bhushan 2025
  • Tamil Nadu
AM

Ali Mohammed and Ghani Mohammed

Bikaner brothers who have sung Rajasthan's Mand folk style together for about 40 years and taught it to others, jointly honoured with the Padma Shri in 2024.

  • Padma Shri 2024
  • Rajasthan
President Droupadi Murmu presenting the Padma Bhushan to Alka Yagnik at Rashtrapati Bhavan, 2026

Alka Yagnik

One of Hindi cinema's best-loved playback singers, with a career of over four decades and two National Film Awards, honoured with the Padma Bhushan in 2026.

  • Padma Bhushan 2026
  • Maharashtra
President Droupadi Murmu presenting the Padma Bhushan to Anant Nag at Rashtrapati Bhavan

Anant Nag

A Kannada film actor whose career spans more than 300 films and five decades, honoured with the Padma Bhushan in 2025.

  • Padma Bhushan 2025
  • Karnataka
President Droupadi Murmu presenting the Padma Shri to Anil Kumar Rastogi at Rashtrapati Bhavan, 2026

Anil Kumar Rastogi

A Lucknow biochemist who spent four decades at CDRI while acting in 100 plays and 70 films, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2026.

  • Padma Shri 2026
  • Uttar Pradesh
AH

Anupama Hoskere

A Bengaluru puppeteer who founded Dhaatu Puppet Theater, staging Indian epics with puppets, dance and theatre, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2024.

  • Padma Shri 2024
  • Karnataka
Portrait of Arijit Singh

Arijit Singh

A playback singer from Jiaganj in West Bengal who became one of the most-streamed voices in the world, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2025.

  • Padma Shri 2025
  • West Bengal
AS

Arjun Singh Dhurve

A retired teacher from Dindori, the first postgraduate of the Baiga tribe, who popularised Baiga song and dance; Padma Shri, 2022.

  • Padma Shri 2022
  • Madhya Pradesh
AV

Arvind Vaidya

A Gujarati stage veteran who has acted in or directed more than 300 plays and is known on TV as Bapuji in Anupamaa, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2026.

  • Padma Shri 2026
  • Gujarat
AK

Ashok Kumar Biswas

A Bihar artist who revived Tikuli art as a form of folk painting and has trained about 8,000 women in it, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2024.

  • Padma Shri 2024
  • Bihar
Portrait of Ashok Saraf

Ashok Saraf

A Marathi and Hindi film actor loved for his comic timing across more than 250 films, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2025.

  • Padma Shri 2025
  • Maharashtra
Ashwini Bhide Deshpande singing on stage with a tanpura

Ashwini Bhide Deshpande

A Hindustani classical singer of the Jaipur-Atrauli gharana who first trained as a biochemist, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2025.

  • Padma Shri 2025
  • Maharashtra
BY

Baburam Yadav

A Moradabad brass engraver with six decades in the craft who has trained hundreds of young people free of charge, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2024.

  • Padma Shri 2024
  • Uttar Pradesh
BJ

Barry John

A British-born theatre director who has trained actors in India since 1968 and co-founded Delhi's Theatre Action Group, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2025.

  • Padma Shri 2025
  • Delhi
Portrait of Begam Batool

Begam Batool

A Rajasthani folk and bhajan singer from the Mirasi community who broke social barriers to perform on four continents, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2025.

  • Padma Shri 2025
  • Rajasthan
BP

Bhagabat Padhan

A guru of Sabda Nrutya, a mythological dance form of western Odisha, who has trained more than 600 artists since 1974, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2024.

  • Padma Shri 2024
  • Odisha
BH

Bhai Harjinder Singh (Srinagar Wale)

A Gurbani kirtan singer who revived old ragas and has sung at the Golden Temple since 1986, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2025.

  • Padma Shri 2025
  • Punjab
BC

Bhanubhai Chunilal Chitara

An Ahmedabad artisan of Mata ni Pachedi, the painted temple cloth of Gujarat, who has kept the family craft alive, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2023.

  • Padma Shri 2023
  • Gujarat