Maestros honoured

New Delhi: President Pranab Mukherjee on Wednesday released a set of eight commemorative postage stamps featuring renowned Indian classical musicians at a function at Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi. The set brought out by Postal Department features icons form the world of Indian classical music: Pandit Ravi Shankar, Pandit Bhimsen Joshi, D K Pattammal, Pandit Mallikarjun Mansur, Gangubai Hangal, Pandit Kumar Gandharva, Ustad Vilayat Khan and Ustad Ali Akbar Khan. Speaking on the occasion, the President said, “as we pay tribute to eight of the greatest music maestros of contemporary India, we celebrate their life and work and their matchless legacy.” “These eight maestros are, without a doubt, among the tallest luminaries in the history of world music. They have not only achieved personal perfection but also made extraordinary contributions in their respective fields for the development and evolution of the schools of music in which their talents were nurtured and honed,” Mukherjee said. He said their contribution and its enrichment of our cultural heritage cannot be quantified or estimated.