Sangeet Natak Akademi

About Sangeet Natak Akademi

• It is India’s national academy of music, dance and drama.
• It was created by a resolution of the Ministry of Education, with P.V. Rajamannar as its first Chairman.
• It was set up in 1953 for the preservation and promotion of the vast intangible heritage of India’s diverse culture expressed in forms of music, dance and drama.
• Presently, it is an Autonomous Body of the Ministry of Culture.
• The Chairman of the Akademi is appointed by the President of India for a term of five years.
• It is fully funded by the Government for the implementation of its schemes and programmes.
• Aims and objectives
  • To co-ordinate the activities of regional or State Akademies of dance, drama and music;
  • To promote research in the fields of Indian dance, drama and music and for this purpose, to establish a library and museum, etc.;
  • To co-operate with such similar academies as there may be and other institutions and associations for the furtherance of its objects and for the enrichment of Indian culture as a whole;
  • To encourage the exchange of ideas and enrichment of techniques between the different regions in regard to the arts of dance, drama and music;
  • To encourage, where necessary, the establishment of theatre centres, on the basis of regional languages, and co-operation among different theatre centres;
• The Sangeet Natak Akademi Awards are the highest national recognition conferred on practising artists.
• The Akademi also confers Fellowships on eminent artists and scholars of music, dance and drama; and has in 2006 instituted annual awards to young artists – the Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar. 

Q1) What is Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar?

It is an annual Indian award given by the Sangeet Natak Akademi to outstanding artists under 40 who have demonstrated talent in the fields of music, dance and drama. The award is intended to provide national recognition to the artists in the early years of their careers.

Source: Sangeet Natak Akademi to have South India centre in Hyderabad