MANGESHKAR PARIVAR KE AWARDS .... EK AASHIRWAAD ..... By Ali Peter John

My long association with Prabhu Kunj , on Peddar Road began with my first small meeting with Lata Mangeshkar in the lift , when I as a nobody was not supposed to take the lift and she asked the security guard to let me in and left me at the door of the apartment where my aunt Cecil was working as a domestic help and the guests of maids and servants were not allowed to take the lift but climb the iron staircase from the back entrance - Ali Peter John

Lataji didn't know that there was a rule in Prabhu Kunj that prevented guests of workers to use the lift .

Little did I know that I would be making many more trips by the lift of Prabhu Kunj only to meet Lata Mangeshkar till she started falling sick ten years ago ....

On November 18 , I was one of the press people who were invited to cover the Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Smrithi Pratisthan Awards instituted by the Mangeshkar family and given continuously till the organisers had to take a two year break because of the pandemic .

Some of the leading celebrities from the world of cinema , music , theatre , art , literature and social work have been honoured with these highly prestigious awards .

It was in this background that I tried to make my way to Prabhu Kunj to attend the press conference , but my foot again came in my way and I had to give up my plans to reach Prabhu Kunj to know more about the awards , but to know more about the health of all the members of the Mangeshkar family who were all above 85 , Pandit Hridayanath Mangeshkar ( Bal ) was the youngest at 85 , Usha Mangeshkar was 87 , Asha Bhosle was 89 , Meena Mangeshkar Khadikar was 91 and Bharat Ratna Lata Mangeshkar had just turned 93 on September 28 2021 .

I had to give up my pilgrimage to Prabhu Kunj , but I made sure that my friend Mr Avinash Prabhavalkar who is a very close friend of Pandit Hridayanath Mangeshkar and the joint founder of Hridayesh Arts which takes care of the organising the award show gave me all the information I needed .

And so here I go with the details about the awards and the awards function to be held at the Deenanath Mangeshkar Auditorium in Vile Parle East on November 24

Mr Uddhav Thackeray the C M of Maharashtra will honour Pyarelal Sharma, ( of the Laxmikant - Pyarelal team of composers), Prem Chopra and Nana Patekar

Usha Mangeshkar will be given the Deenanath Puraskar for her contribution to music.

Singer-composer Meena Mangeshkar-Khadikar will be conferred with Deenanath ‘Vishesh Puraskar’.

Actor Prem Chopra will also be conferred with Deenanath ‘Vishesh Puraskar’ for his contribution to the cinematic world.

Nana Patekar will be felicitated with Master Deenanath Vishesh Puraskar for his contribution to theatre and the cinema world.

MP –Rajya Sabha and Editor of Saamana, Sanjay Raut, will also be honoured for his service in the field of journalism

Veteran actress Mala Sinha will also be awarded at the prestigious award function.

For his contribution in the field of literary arts, Santosh Anand ( ek pyar ka nagma hai) will be conferred with Vagvilasini Puraskar and this award will also be given to Kavyitri Neeraja for her dedication in the field of Poetry and Literature.

To be honoured for their work in the field of medicine and healthcare are Dr Pratit Samdani, Dr Rajeev Sharma, Dr Janardan Nimbolkar, Dr Ashwin Mehta, Dr Nishit Shah and Dr Sameer Jog.

“In memory of Master Deenanathji, whose monumental contributions as singer, musician and stage artiste have been an inspiration to the people of Maharashtra and India, the Mangeshkar family organises the Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Smruti Pratishthan Awards to honour legends.

We are glad that we have the love and support of the masses,” said Hridaynath Mangeshkar and Usha Mangeshkar.

This prestigious award was introduced and flourished by the Mangeshkar family for the last 31 years.

Due to the pandemic, the award was not hosted in the last two years, this year it will take place on November, 24,202.

Organised by Hridayesh Arts, the award function ceremony will be followed by an entertaining musical that will be anchored by Dr. Rahul Deshpande.

The 79th Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Punyatithi is jointly organised by Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Smruti Prathishthan and Hridayanath

Uddhav Thackeray To Honour Pyarelal Sharma, Prem Chopra, Nana Patekar And More With Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Awards.

Deenanath Award to be held on November, 24,2021 will see Nana Patekar, Prem Chopra and many others being honoured for their work in the field of art, music and drama.

Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Smruti Pratishthan has been hosting the prestigious Deenanath Award and other awards for years now to felicitate scholars from the field of music, drama, art and social work, will be held on November, 24,2021 at Deenanath Mangeshkar Natyagriha.

The event will be graced by Maharashtra Chief Minister Shri Uddhav Thackeray, who will be seen presenting these prestigious awards to the legends.

This year Jeevan Gaurav Puraskar of the Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Award will be presented to legendary Pyarelal Sharma for his contribution in the field of Indian music and the cine industry.

Usha Mangeshkar will be given the Deenanath Puraskar for her contribution to music.

Singer-composer Meena Mangeshkar-Khadikar will be conferred with Deenanath ‘Vishesh Puraskar’.

Actor Prem Chopra will also be conferred with Deenanath ‘Vishesh Puraskar’ for his contribution to the cinematic world.

Nana Patekar will be felicitated with Master Deenanath Vishesh Puraskar for his contribution to theatres and the cinematic world.

MP –Rajya Sabha and Editor of Saamana, Sanjay Raut, will also be honoured for his service in the field of editorial.

Veteran actress Mala Sinha will also be awarded at this prestigious award function.

For his contribution in the field of literary arts, Santosh Anand will be conferred with Vagvilasini Puraskar and this award will be also given to Kavyitri Neeraja for her dedication in the field of Poetry and Literature.

To be honoured for their work in the field of medicine and healthcare are Dr Pratit Samdani, Dr Rajeev Sharma, Dr Janardan Nimbolkar, Dr Ashwin Mehta, Dr Nishit Shah and Dr Sameer Jog.

“In memory of Master Deenanathji, whose monumental contributions as singer, musician and stage artiste have been an inspiration to the people of Maharashtra and India, the Mangeshkar family organises the Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Smruti Pratishthan Awards to honour legends.

We are glad that we have the love and support of the masses,” said Hridaynath Mangeshkar and Usha Mangeshkar.

This prestigious award was introduced and flourished by the Mangeshkar family Due to the pandemic, the award was not hosted in the last two years, this year it will take place on November, 24,2021 Organised by Hridayesh Arts, the award function ceremony will be followed by an entertaining musical that will be anchored by Dr. Rahul Deshpande.

The 79th Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Punyatithi is jointly organised by Master Deenanath Mangeshkar Smruti Pratisthan.....

And as Avinash kept giving me information about the awards show , INovember 18 was anxious to know about whether Lataji had anything to do with the awards and the function this time and he said , it was difficult to imagine that the queen among nightingales was now confined to her own room in Prabhu Kunj and was keeping in touch with the world outside through her niece Mrs Rachna Shah .

What a contrast it was to my first meeting with her and what she is now . But isn't that what life is all about , my friends , whether it is the life of Bharat Ratna Lata Mangeshkar or the beggar woman singing in a crowded train to make a living .