Kolkata,Shri. Gopal Krishna Gandhi, Hon’ble Governor of West Bengal conferred the Legends of India Lifetime Achievement Award for Fine Arts 2008 today to Shri Paritosh Sen at a ceremony the ICCR Centre (Rabindranath Tagore Centre) in Kolkata. He also inaugurated Canvas 2008, a collection of paintings of artists from Delhi and Kolkata.

Canvas 2008 represents six generations of legendary artists alongside upcoming talent who have the potential of becoming legends themselves. The exhibition showcases the works of Shri. Paritosh Sen, Shri. Jatin Das, Ms. Arpana Caur, Shri. Shuvaprassana, Shri. Sunil Das and Shri. Dhiraj Choudhury, to name a few. More than forty eminent artists will showcase their works comprising paintings and sculptures specially created for the occasion. The exhibition will continue till July 6, 2008

‘Legends of India’ Lifetime Achievement Award was introduced with the objective of honoring accomplished artists or organization for their unrelenting efforts in promoting traditional art forms be it Sangeet, theatre or fine arts. The award carries a gold plaque, an angavastra and a cash reward of Rs.25, 000/-.

The Legends of India Selection Committee decided to award Shri Paritosh Sen for his excellence in the use of form for the highest creativity. A pioneer of the modern art movement in India, Paritosh Sen has excelled in using the human figure set against a two-dimensional picture plane to express his views on contemporary life. His works have been exhibited in India and internationally. Also a prolific writer, Paritosh Sen has published many works in both Bengali and English. He is a living legend who has enriched Fine Arts in India.

In 2008 the Legends of India Lifetime Achievement award for Sangeet were given to Smt. Girija Devi and Guru M K Saroja by the Hon’ble Lt. Governor of Delhi, Shri Tejendra Khanna on May 22, 2008 in New Delhi.

Among the distinguished members of the Selection Committee for the Legends of India Lifetime Achievement Award are Shri Soli J Sorabjee, Shri Pawan Verma, Shri Lalit Mansingh, Shri K P Singh Deo, Shri Madhup Mudgal, Smt. Shanta Serbjeet Singh, Dr. Krishna Bisht, Dr. Varsha Das, Shri A Ramachandran, Dr. Yamini Krishnamurthy and Prof. Rupen Guha Majumdar who unanimously decided upon recipients of this year’s award.

The recipients of the Legends of India Lifetime Achievement award in yester years include some renowned names like Shri Krishen Khanna, Prof. Shankho Choudhury, Smt. Mrinalini Sarabhai, Pt. Birju Maharaj, Shri Buddhadev Dasgupta, Dr. Yamini Krishnamurthy, Smt. Chandralekha and others.

Legends of India is an independent society that has been promoting Indian Art Forms for a decade. The prime objective of this society is to promote and nurture traditional Indian art forms, which in recent decades is on the verge of fading away.

The year 2008 is a landmark for Legends of India as it celebrates its 10th Anniversary in synchronization with ICCR. ‘Legends of India’ will be the first National Festival of Indian Art Forms dedicated to the youth which will travel with a host of Legends and upcoming artists through the year across the country.

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