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JAipur: deuce common people artists from Rajasthan were honoured with the Padma Shri grant in 2026 below the ‘unsung heroes’ category on sun.The awardees are Gafruddin Mewati Jogi, a 68-year-old from Rajasthan’s Mewat who plays the bhapang, and Taga Ram Bheel, a resident of Mool Sagar near Jaisalmer, who plays the algoza.Jogi, who started learning the instrument from his father at the age of four, said, “The traditional culture of the Mewati Jogi community is a mix of Hindus and Muslims. I have been performing Pandun Ka Kada gana for over 50 years now. I know over 2,500 couplets, specifically depicting various stories from the Mahabharata, which I inherited from my family.”In 2024, Jogi was also honoured by the President at the Sangeet Natak Akademi in Delhi for his contribution to promoting this rural folk art form across the world. He has also performed in several countries throughout his career, including Australia and Canada, and in London during a special performance on Queen Elizabeth II’s birthday in 2011.“I have also performed at an event before Prime Minister Narendra Modi and several film actors in Delhi in 2022. I am honoured to be awarded the Padma Shri. This award will precisely help me in spreading this rare folk art form to a larger number of people,” Gafruddin said.Meanwhile, living at a quiet boutique stay outside the town at Mool Sagar, Bheel plays his favourite instrument, the algoza. Belonging to the Bhil community — a tribal group traditionally regarded as Rajputs — Bheel was also a shepherd. He learnt to play the algoza as a child by secretly practising on his father’s instrument and has been performing since the age of 10.“I have spent 30 years of my life in the jungles of Ranthambore, where I used to play the algoza. I got my first algoza when I was 11 years old and started learning from my father. In 1981, I delivered my first stage performance in Jaisalmer when I was only 18. I have also performed various programmes for AIR, Jaisalmer, and Nehru Yuva Kendra Sansthan (NYKS),” Bheel said.Bheel went to France in 1996 for his first international tour and has since performed in 15 countries across Europe, as well as in Singapore, Russia, Japan, Africa and the United States, for shows and workshops. Besides the algoza, he also plays the matka and the flute.

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Two Rajasthan folk artists honoured with Padma Shri under ‘Unsung Heroes’ category

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