Shekhar Sen appointed as new chairman of Sangeet Natak Akademi

The Ministry of Culture has appointed renowned musician and theater director Shekhar Sen as the Chairman of Sangeet Natak Akademi, India’s leading institution for arts. He will be holding this post for the next five years.

Shekhar Sen is very famous for his mono act musical plays such as ‘Tulsi’, ‘Kabeer’, ‘Vivekananda’, ‘Sanmanti’, ‘Saahab’ and ‘Soordas’, which have been highly acclaimed.

Knowledge is Wealth

• Shekhar Sen is one of the recipients of 2015 Padma Shri Awards. 
• The Sangeet Natak Akademi was set up in 1952 and Dr PV Rajamannar was its first Chairman. 
• Mahesh Sharma is currently Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Culture, Tourism and MoS for Ministry of Civil Aviation.
• The Classical Status for a dance is conferred by Sangeet Natak Akademi. The Dances which have the Classical Status in India are,
  • Bharatanatyam – Tamil Nadu
  • Odissi – Odisha
  • Kuchipudi – Andhra Pradesh
  • Mohiniaattam – Kerala
  • Sattriya – Assam
  • Kathakali – Kerala
  • Kathak – Northern India
  • Manipuri – originating in Manipur