By IANS
New Delhi : Millennium star Amitabh Bachchan, sand artiste Sudershan Patnaik, former cricketer Kapil Dev and the country’s first woman Indian Police Service officer Kiran Bedi are among 12 recipients of the ‘First Ustad Bismillah Khan Awards For Excellence 2008’.
The award has been instituted by Bismillah: The Beginning Foundation, a private initiative that had also brought out a pictorial monograph on the life and art of the shehnai maestro in 2006 to extend financial support to him.
The other recipients of the award are Farouque Sheikh (culture), Rajya Sabha MP Amar Singh (harmony), Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hoda (leadership), Sulabh International founder Bindeshwar Pathak (social service), Jyotsna Suri (entrepreneurship), Rajendra Prashanna (music) and Amity International director Ashok Chauhan (education) besides Bachchan and Nafisa Ali for humanity.
The awards will be conferred on March 21, the 93rd birthday of the late maestro. Each award carries a shawl, citation and a shehnai made of silver.
Two scholarships worth Rs.10,000 per annum, instituted during the lifetime of the ustad, meant for underprivileged students of shehnai would also be announced the same day, an official statement by the foundation said Saturday.
A 100-page pictorial souvenir titled “Peace, Harmony & the Ustad” will be released on the occasion.