ACTOR-DIRECTOR Kamala Haasan and classical singer Begum Parveen Sultana have been
selected for the prestigious Padma Bhushan award this year, while Bollywood actors Vidya Balan and Paresh Rawal will receive the Padma Shri.
The awards will be presented by Indian President Pranab Mukherjee at a function held at Rashtrapati Bhavan in March.
Haasan, in a career spanning more than five decades, has over 190 films to his credit, across genres and languages such as Tamil, Hindi, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam.
Haasan, 59, has given memorable hits in Bollywood such as Hey Ram, Sadma, Chachi 420 and Ek Duje Ke Liye. His most famous Tamil films include Moondram Pirai and Nayagan.
Sultana, 63, a classical singer of the Patiala Gharana, and well-known Tamil lyricist-writer Vairamuthu have also been chosen for Padma Bhushan, which is India’s third highest
civilian award.
National award-winning actress Vidya Balan, 36, has been selected for Padma Shri, India’s fourth highest civilian award. She is known for portraying strong female protagonists in films such as Paa, Ishqiya, No One Killed Jessica, The Dirty Picture and Kahaani.
Veteran actor Paresh Rawal, who has starred in films such as Road to Sangam, Oh My God, Hera Pheri, Sir and Sardar, will also be conferred the Padma Shri.
The list also includes Goa-based designer Wendell Rodricks, veteran Bengali actresses Sabitri Chatterjee, Supriya Devi and writer-director Sooni Taraporvala.
Taraporvala, a longtime collaborator of Mira Nair, has written the scripts ofSalaam Bombay, The Namesake and Mississippi Masala.
