Heroes in Art (page 8)

R Muthukannammal

The last living exponent of Sadir, the temple dance from which Bharatanatyam grew, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2022.

Padma Shri 2022
Tamil Nadu

R. Krishnan

An Alu Kurumba painter from the Nilgiris who revived his community's Ajile Bottu art, honoured posthumously with the Padma Shri in 2026.

Padma Shri 2026 (posthumous)
Tamil Nadu

R. Madhavan

The Tamil and Hindi film actor known as Maddy, whose film Rocketry won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2026.

Padma Shri 2026
Maharashtra

Radhakrishnan Devasenapathy Sthapathy

A Swamimalai bronze sculptor who cast the 27-foot Nataraja at Delhi's Bharat Mandapam, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2025.

Padma Shri 2025
Tamil Nadu

Radhe Devi

A Manipuri bridal dresser known as Abok Radhe who has made potloi costumes for over 1,000 brides, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2021.

Padma Shri 2021
Manipur

Radhe Shyam Barle

A Panthi dancer from Chhattisgarh whose academy has more than 2,000 troupes spreading the message of Guru Ghasidas, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2021.

Padma Shri 2021
Chhattisgarh

Raghuvir Khedkar

A tamasha artist, son of Kantabai Satarkar, who formed the All-India Tamasha Parishad during the pandemic, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2026.

Padma Shri 2026
Maharashtra

Rajastapathi Kaliappa Goundar

A Salem bronze sculptor who has made temple icons for India and abroad and restored more than 100 old temples, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2026.

Padma Shri 2026
Tamil Nadu

Rajdutt

A Marathi film director with more than 60 years in cinema and three National Awards, who still acts in his nineties, honoured with the Padma Bhushan in 2024.

Padma Bhushan 2024
Maharashtra

Rajendra Prasad

A Telugu film actor known for comedy and family films, with more than 286 films over four decades and eight Nandi awards, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2026.

Padma Shri 2026
Andhra Pradesh

Ram Dayal Sharma

A Nautanki singer and guru called the Nightingale of Braj, who has given more than 5,000 shows, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2022.

Padma Shri 2022
Rajasthan

Ram Kumar Mallick

A dhrupad singer of the Darbhanga gharana who teaches dhrupad free in Darbhanga, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2024.

Padma Shri 2024
Bihar

Ram Sahay Panday

A Bundelkhand dancer who championed the Rai folk dance despite social boycott, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2022. He died in 2025.

Padma Shri 2022
Madhya Pradesh

Rama Swamy Annavarapu

A Vijayawada Carnatic violinist who accompanied the great singers of his age and taught students free for seven decades, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2021.

Padma Shri 2021
Andhra Pradesh

Ramachandra Manjhi

A Bhojpuri folk actor who worked for four decades with Bhikhari Thakur, famed as Rakhailan in Bidesiya, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2021.

Padma Shri 2021
Bihar

Ramachandraiah

A Koya folk singer who can sing the Sammakka-Sarakka tale for 24 hours in Telugu and Koya, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2022.

Padma Shri 2022
Telangana

Ramesh Parmar and Shanti Parmar

A Jhabua couple who make tribal dolls, dresses and toys and have trained over 1,000 young artisans, jointly honoured with the Padma Shri in 2023.

Padma Shri 2023
Madhya Pradesh

Ramlal Bareth

The last living Kathak dancer of the Raigarh royal court, who spent six decades teaching the Raigarh style, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2024.

Padma Shri 2024
Chhattisgarh

Rani Machaiah

A Kodava folk dancer who has led Kodagu's women's Ummathat dance for decades, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2023.

Padma Shri 2023
Karnataka

Ranjani and Gayatri

Carnatic vocalist sisters who have performed as the duo Ranjani–Gayatri for nearly four decades, honoured together with the Padma Shri in 2026.

Padma Shri 2026
Tamil Nadu

Rashid Khan

A Hindustani vocalist of the Rampur-Sahaswan gharana, honoured with the Padma Bhushan in 2022. He died in 2024.

Padma Bhushan 2022
Uttar Pradesh

Ratan Kahar

A Birbhum folk songwriter and singer of Bhadu songs whose "Boroloker Biti Lo" became widely known, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2024.

Padma Shri 2024
West Bengal

Ratan Parimoo

A Baroda painter and art historian who pioneered the study of modern Indian art, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2025.

Padma Shri 2025
Gujarat

Raveena Ravi Tandon

A Hindi film actor whose work runs from Mohra to Daman and Aranyak, and who runs a charity for children, women and animals; Padma Shri, 2023.

Padma Shri 2023
Maharashtra