Music Maestro Shantanu Moitra Honored in Indore

Music director Shantanu Moitra was bestowed with the 2026 Rashtriya Lata Mangeshkar Alankaran Samman on Monday evening. The award ceremony took place in Indore, the birthplace of the legendary playback singer Lata Mangeshkar. The event spanned two days and included a music evening.

Chief Minister Mohan Yadav attended the ceremony virtually, presenting Moitra with the award, which includes a Rs 5 lakh cash prize and a citation plaque. Yadav emphasized the global significance of an award bearing Lata Mangeshkar's name and lauded Moitra's compositions, including "Bawra Mann" and his renditions of "Shiv Tandav stotram" and "Ram-Siya bhajans."

In his acceptance speech, Moitra expressed gratitude to the Madhya Pradesh government. He reminisced about his studio sessions with Lata Mangeshkar, highlighting her discipline, preparation, and unwavering devotion to music as enduring benchmarks for his own career. This marks Moitra as the 43rd recipient of an award instituted by the Madhya Pradesh government in 1984 to recognize artistic excellence in light music.

The Rashtriya Lata Mangeshkar Award alternates annually between music direction and playback singing. Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy received the 2024 award for music direction, while Sonu Nigam was honored with the 2025 award for playback singing. The concluding evening featured musical performances by the singing duo Sachet-Parampara and their ensemble.