Mangala Kapoor
A Varanasi classical singer who taught at BHU for 30 years and runs a free music school, honoured with the Padma Shri in 2026.
Mangala Kapoor has sung, taught and written about Indian classical music in Varanasi for most of her life, and is fondly called the “Lata of Banaras”. In 2026 she was named for the Padma Shri in the field of literature and education, from Uttar Pradesh [1].
Training
Kapoor was born in Varanasi on 15 January 1954 [2]. She trained in the Gwalior gharana and in semi-classical music under Pandit Surendra Mohan Mishra [2]. At Banaras Hindu University she won a gold medal in her master’s in music and earned a PhD under Pandit Chittranjan Jyotishi [2].
Teacher
She spent over three decades on the BHU faculty, and by the time she retired in 2019 she was heading its music department [2]. She has written five books on music, including her autobiography, Seerat [2].
She has sung at Varanasi festivals such as Ganga Mahotsav, Subah-e-Banaras and Budhwa Mangal [2]. Her foundation, the Prof. Mangla Kapoor Foundation, gives free music lessons to people from poor families and people with disabilities [2].
Her honours include the Uttar Pradesh government’s State Role Model Award (2021) and the Uttar Pradesh Sangeet Natak Akademi’s Acharya Bharat Muni award (2024) [2].
Sources
- [1] Padma Awards 2026: list of awardees — Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. Accessed 11 October 2026.
- [2] Padma Awards 2026 investiture ceremony brochure: citation for Mangala Kapoor — Press Information Bureau, Government of India. Accessed 12 October 2026.
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