Renowned artist Lalat Mohan Patnaik to get Dharmapada Award

Eminent artist Lalat Mohan Patnaik will be felicitated with the Dharmapada Award, Odisha government's highest honour given to an individual for lifetime achievement and contribution to enrichment of visual art and sculpture.

The Odisha Lalit Kala Akademi on Thursday announced the name of the recipient of Dharmapada Award for the year 2021. 

The Akademi also announced the names of five noted personalities for special felicitation. They are Jyotirmayee Mohanty, Baladev Maharatha, Panchanan Sur, Durga Charan Panda and Debendra Mishra. While the first four are senior artists, the fifth one is a senior sculptor. 

Dharmapada Award carries a purse of Rs 5 lakh, a citation and shawl, the special felicitation awardees will each be felicitated with Rs 1 lakh cash and a citation. 

The OLKA, the apex body of the State for art and culture, has been felicitating artists and sculptors for lifetime achievement and contribution towards the enrichment of visual art and sculpture since 1987.

The recipients of the Dharmapada Award for last five years, from 2016 to 2020, were painter Banabihari Parida, sculptor Shyam Sundar Patnaik, painter Jagadish Chandra Kanungo, pattachitra artist Binod Maharana and painter Mahendra Prasad Mohapatra respectively.