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Akshaya Samman conferred on Manna Dey

Photo: Ashoke Chakrabarty

Honouring a legend: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik giving away the Akshaya Samman award to renowned singer Manna Dey in Bhubaneswar on Friday. —

BHUBANESWAR: The scene was seen to be believed. While the Utkal Mandap open-air auditorium, India’s biggest space of its kind, was spiralling with a sea of crowd, there were long queues outside waiting to sneak in.

The reason? All of them were his fans and were too keen to join the birth anniversary celebrations of their most beloved singer Akshaya Mohanty.

“Let us remember him this way by singing his songs - again and again. And let us never forget our singers and songs of the past,” said legendary Bollywood singer Manna Dey, who was conferred the coveted ‘Akshaya Samman’, an annual award instituted this year to honour a legendary musician of the nation, by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. The honour carries a cash award of Rs. 1 lakh. Incidentally, Mr. Manna Dey had lent his voice for an Oriya movie ‘Suryamukhi’. In his brief but impressive address, the Chief Minister paid his homage to the singer-musician-writer who happened to be a household name in Orissa.

He presented awards to winners of the annual State-level Akshaya Sangeet competition (a competition in singing songs sung by the late legend). The winners included Susant Nayak, a visually challenged singer (topper in senior group), Amrita Bharati Panda (junior topper) and Barnali Hota, the sub junior group topper. Special jury award went to six-year-old Ananya Nanda and Sikha Rath, the youngest and oldest participant of the competition. Odissi dance drama ‘Kanchi Abhiyan’ choreographed and conducted by versatile danseuse Aruna Mohanty with 40 dancers was staged on the occasion while several eminent singers of the State like Akshaya’s friend Pranab Patnaik and Trupty Das performed as a homage to the legend.

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