(1888PressRelease)
May 30, 2008 - New Delhi: The Legends of India Lifetime Achievement award for Fine Arts 2008 will be conferred upon to Shri Paritosh Sen on May 31, 2008 at a ceremony to mark the inauguration of the ICCR Centre (Rabindranath Tagore Centre) in Kolkata. The dignitaries who are expected to be present on the occasion are Shri Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, Hon’ble Chief Minister, West Bengal, Shri Pranab Mukherjee, Hon’ble Minister for External Affairs, Shri Karan Singh, Chairman, ICCR and Shri Pawan Verma, DG, ICCR among others.
‘Legends of India’ Lifetime Achievement Award was introduced with the objective to honor accomplished artist or organization for his/her/its unrelenting efforts in promoting traditional art forms be it Sangeet, theatre and fine arts. The award carries a gold plaque, angavastra and a cash reward of Rs.25,000/-.
Shri Paritosh Sen is being conferred the Legends of India Lifetime Achievement Award 2008 for promoting the art of painting as a form of high creativity. A pioneer of the modern art movement in India, Sen has excelled in using the human figure set against a two- dimensional picture plane to express his views on contemporary life. His works have been exhibited in India and internationally. Also a prolific writer, Sen has published many works in both Bengali and English. He is a living legend who has enriched Fine Arts in India.
The presentation of this prestigious award will be followed by the Legends of India Fine Arts Festival “Canvas” to be held from June 27 to July 6, 2008 in Kolkata at the ICCR Gallery (Rabindranath Tagore Center). More than forty eminent artists will showcase their works comprising paintings and sculptures specially created for the occasion.
Smt. Girija Devi and Guru M K Saroja were awarded the Legends of India Lifetime Achievement award for Sangeet by Hon’ble Lt. Governor of Delhi Shri Tejendra Khanna on May 22, 2008 in New Delhi.
The selection committee for the Legends of India Lifetime Achievement award comprises of distinguished personalities namely Shri Soli J Sorabjee, Shri Pawan Verma, Shri Lalit Manshingh, Shri K P Singh Deo, Shri Madhup Mudgal, Smt. Shanta Serbjeet Singh, Dr. Krishna Bisht, Dr. Varsha Das, Shri A Ramachandran, Dr. Yamini Krishnamurthy and Prof. Rupen Guha Majumdar who unanimously decided upon recipients of this year’s award.
The recipients of the Legends of India Lifetime Achievement award in the yester years include some renowned names like Shri Krishen Khanna, Prof. Shankho Choudhury, Smt. Mrinalini Sarabhai, Pt. Birju Maharaj, Shri Buddhadev Dasgupta, Dr. Yamini Krishnamurthy, Smt. Chandralekha and others.
Legends of India is an independent society that has been promoting Indian Art Forms for a decade. The prime objective of this society is to promote and nurture traditional Indian art forms, which in the recent decades is on the verge of fading away.
The year 2008 will be a landmark for Legends of India as we celebrate its 10th Anniversary in synchronization with ICCR. ‘Legends of India’ will be the first National Festival of Indian Art Forms dedicated to the youth which will travel with a host of Legends and upcoming artists through the year across the country.
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