Tributes

Rotary Kala Gaurav Puraskar awarded to Madanji posthumously
31 December 2009


The Rotary Club, Lokmanyanagar, Pune awarded Madanji the Rotary Kala Gaurav Puraskar posthumously on 29 dec at an event in Pune .

The event was held at the Tilak Smarak Mandir.

Various luminaries from Pune as well as Madanji fans attended the event and a packed audience gave a thunderous applause when the award was announced for their favorite composer.

The district governor of the Rotary Club, Mohan Palashe and the president Prasad Sovani presided over the event. A citation was read out by Siraj Syed on the occasion and was lauded by all present.

Madanjis sons, Sanjeev and Sameer received the honour on their beloved father's behalf. They were earlier welcomed with pugdis as is the Pune tradition . Both spoke emotionally on the occasion and the audience received them warmly.

The event began with the screening of the 30 min film on Madanji, which had many in tears, and all requesting for a copy of the film to keep for themselves!

The Rotary Club also released a beautiful souvenir on the occasion with some wonderful pictures and writups of Madanji.

The formal presentation was followed by an enthralling recital of Madanji's handpicked songs by noted classical singer Alaka Deo Marulkar and her daughter Shivani. Alakaji is an ardent admirer of Madanji and recounted her one and only meeting with him a few months before he passed away... She called him 'Pandit' Madan Mohan and claimed that his music was the perfect confluence of perfection and soulfulness.

Indeed it was an event to remember for all Puneites and Madanji admirers.

As prasad sovani remarked, 'maybe in some small way, we are rectifying the wrong done by fate in not awarding Madanji enough in his lifetime.'