Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and other Ministers were present during the Civil investiture ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhawan.
President Droupadi Murmu on Monday (May 25, 2026) 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.
Dharmendra’s award for exceptional and distinguished service in the field of art was received by his wife and MP Hema Malini.
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.
Full list of Padma Awards 2026
The President conferred Padma Bhushan on former Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari and banker Uday Kotak. Others honoured were Shatavadhani R Ganesh, acclaimed polymath who revived the challenging classical Indian art form ‘Avadhana’ and gastroenterologist Kallipatti Ramasamy Palaniswamy.
Ms. Murmu also conferred the Padma Bhushan award posthumously on ad guru Piyush Pandey and former parliamentarian Vijay Kumar Malhotra. Pandey’s wife and Malhotra’s son, respectively, received the awards.
Indian women’s team captain Harmanpreet Kaur was conferred with the Padma Shri award.
Actor Prosenjit Chatterjee has been conferred with the prestigious Padma Shri Award by President Droupadi Murmu.
Honoured for his immense contribution to Indian cinema, particularly Bengali films, Prosenjit received one of the country’s highest civilian awards amid loud applause.
For the occasion, Prosenjit Chatterjee chose a traditional ensemble, consisting of a golden kurta set.
Para athlete Praveen Kumar and former Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) director general K. Vijay Kumar received the Padma Shri awards.
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.
For 2026, the President has approved conferment of 131 Padma Awards — five Padma Vibhushan, 13 Padma Bhushan and 113 Padma Shri. The awards will be conferred at two separate Civil Investiture ceremonies.
(With inputs from Agencies)
source/content: thehindu.com (headline edited)