President confers 66 Padma Awards; actor Dharmendra, violinist N Rajam honoured

President Droupadi Murmu conferred the Padma Vibhushan on Bollywood actor Dharmendra and classical musician N Rajam posthumously at a Civil Investiture Ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

President Droupadi Murmu on Monday conferred the Padma Vibhushan on Bollywood actor Dharmendra posthumously and classical musician and violinist N Rajam at a Civil Investiture Ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhavan here.

As the name of Dharmendra's wife Hema Malini, a BJP MP, was announced to receive his award for his exceptional and distinguished service in the field of art, their daughter Ahana Deol, sitting in the audience, broke down in tears.

Rajam was honoured for her pioneering contribution to Indian classical music, especially for revolutionising violin performance through the 'Gayaki Ang' style that replicates vocal music on the instrument.

Murmu conferred the Padma Bhushan on Bhagat Singh Koshyari, former Uttarakhand chief minister; Shatavadhani R Ganesh, acclaimed polymath who revived the challenging classical Indian art form 'Avadhana'; Uday Suresh Kumar Kotak, founder of Kotak Mahindra Bank; and gastroenterologist Kallipatti Ramasamy Palaniswamy.

She also conferred the award posthumously on ad guru Piyush Pandey and former parliamentarian Vijay Kumar Malhotra. Pandey's wife and Malhotra's son received the awards.

For 2026, the President has approved conferment of 131 Padma Awards -- five Padma Vibhushan, 13 Padma Bhushan and 113 Padma Shri. At the ceremony on Monday, she conferred two Padma Vibhushan, six Padma Bhushan and 58 Padma Shri.

The remaining Padma awardees will be conferred in the second round of the ceremony to be held later, sources said.

Indian women's cricket team captain Harmanpreet Kaur Bhullar, actor Prosenjit Chatterjee, para athlete Praveen Kumar and former Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) director general K Vijay Kumar received the Padma Shri.

Folk musician Mir Haji Kasam, Tamil devotional music artist N Swaminathan and Rajasthan folk artist Taga Ram Bhil, known for playing the traditional wind instrument Algoja, were among those honoured for their contribution to art and culture.

Silambam master K Pajanivel was awarded for promoting the ancient Tamil martial art, while hockey coach Baldev Singh was honoured for mentoring several top Indian players.

Kantha embroidery artist Tripti Mukherjee was also among the honorees.

Social worker Janardan Bapurao Bothe was honoured for rural upliftment and promotion of the Gramgeeta philosophy and husband-wife duo Ramchandra Godbole and Suneeta Godbole for providing healthcare and social support to tribal communities for over three decades in the once Naxal-infested Bastar region of Chhattisgarh.

The President also conferred the Padma Shri on bibliophile Ankegowda M, environmentalist Devaki Amma G, Sanskrit scholar Vempaty Kutumba Shastry, botanist Gambir Singh Yonzone and environmentalist Hally War, among other notable citizens.

The ceremony, which was held in the Gantantra Mandap of the Rashtrapati Bhavan, began with an instrumental rendition of the national song, ''Vande Mataram'', followed by the national anthem, ''Jana Gana Mana''.

It was attended by Vice President C P Radhakrishnan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, among others.

Announced on the Republic Day every year, the Padma awards are given in various fields, including art, social work, public affairs, science and engineering, trade and industry, medicine, literature and education, sports and civil service.