Padma Awards 2026: Rohit Sharma, Mammootty, Alka Yagnik and Vijay Amritraj among 65 honoured at Rashtrapati Bhavan
Padma Awards are among India's highest civilian honours, instituted in 1954 alongside the Bharat Ratna. Announced every Republic Day, they recognise extraordinary contributions across art, science, medicine, sports, and public service.
- Jun 23, 2026,
- Updated Jun 23, 2026 6:30 PM IST
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The awards come in three categories — Padma Vibhushan (exceptional service), Padma Bhushan (distinguished service of high order), and Padma Shri (distinguished service in any field). Only Bharat Ratna ranks above all three in India's civilian honours hierarchy.
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President Droupadi Murmu conferred 65 Padma Awards at Rashtrapati Bhavan on June 23 — 2 Padma Vibhushan, 7 Padma Bhushan and 56 Padma Shri. PM Modi, VP Radhakrishnan and Home Minister Amit Shah were present at the ceremony held at 5 PM.
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Justice (Retd.) K.T. Thomas and scholar P. Narayanan received the Padma Vibhushan — India's second-highest civilian award. Both hail from Kerala. Thomas was honoured for Public Affairs; Narayanan for Literature & Education — recognition for a lifetime of exceptional service.
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Former India cricket captain Rohit Sharma received the Padma Shri at Rashtrapati Bhavan on June 23 — honouring a career spanning 282 ODIs, 159 T20Is and a historic World Cup-winning captaincy. President Murmu personally conferred the award at the evening ceremony.
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Malayalam superstar Mammootty received the Padma Bhushan for his decades-long contribution to Indian cinema. Actor-filmmaker R. Madhavan and Bengali star Prosenjit Chatterjee were among those conferred the Padma Shri — making June 23 a landmark evening for Indian film.
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Legendary playback singer Alka Yagnik received the Padma Bhushan for her monumental contribution to Indian music. She has sung in 700+ films across 25 languages. In 2024, she disclosed a rare hearing loss condition — making tonight's honour a deeply emotional moment.
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Tennis icon Vijay Amritraj received the Padma Bhushan for Sports. Indo-American oncologist Dr. Dattatreyudu Nori was honoured with Padma Bhushan for Medicine. JMM founder Shibu Soren received the Padma Bhushan posthumously for Public Affairs — accepted by his family at the ceremony.
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Beyond the big names, the 2026 Padma list recognised folk artists, tribal welfare workers, traditional healers and rural educators. Rajasthan folk musician Taga Ram Bheel, who preserves the rare Algoza flute tradition, was among the Padma Shri recipients honoured on the night.