Deepika Padukone To Be Honored With Smita Patil Memorial Award

Bollywood actor Deepika Padukone would be honoured with the biennial Smita Patil Memorial Award instituted by Priyadarshni Academy for her contribution to the film industry.

The award would be presented to her at the 28th anniversary global awards function of the Priyadarshni Academy on September 18 here, its Chairman Nanik Rupani said in a statement here today.

Several Bollywood divas have received this honour before Deepika Padukone — including Sridevi, Dimple Kapadia, Manisha Koirala, Madhuri Dixit, Tabu, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Karisma Kapoor, Urmila Matondkar, Kareena Kapoor, Preity Zinta and Vidya Balan, who received it in 2010.

The timing raised some eyebrows, though. Coming off an uninhibited performance in Cocktail, Deepika was on a dream run — but with contemporaries like Vidya Balan (Paa, Ishqiya, The Dirty Picture, Kahaani) and Kareena Kapoor (Refugee, Chameli, Omkara, Jab We Met) also among past honorees, some wondered whether the young actor had yet done enough to stand in the same league. The Academy evidently felt she had.

Source: Bollywood Hungama

Article edited to reflect Vidya Balan had already received the Smita Patil Award in 2010 — thanks to Ronak Thakkar