The Manipur University faculty member adds another recognition to her academic and artistic career, weeks after receiving the National Award to Teachers 2026.
IMPHAL, September 29, 2026: Dr Pukhrambam Lilabati Devi, Assistant Professor in the Department of Dance and Music at Manipur University, has received the Naad Nartan Excellent Research Paper Award 2025 at the Naad Nartan Festival of Dance and Music held in Bengaluru.
Dr Lilabati presented her research paper on September 25 during the three-day International Conference and Concert on “Indian Knowledge System and Its Relevance to Performing Arts,” held from September 24 to 26 at Janseva Vidya Kendra, Bengaluru.
She received the Excellent Research Paper Award, comprising a certificate and cash prize, during the valedictory programme on September 26.
The conference brought together researchers, scholars and practitioners working in dance, music and other areas of performing arts.
Dr Lilabati also participated in the Naad Nartan Festival of Dance and Music and was listed among the dance participants during the valedictory programme.
Another recognition after National Award to Teachers
The research award comes shortly after Dr Lilabati received the National Award to Teachers 2026 in the Higher Educational Institutions and Polytechnics category.
She was among 21 teachers from higher educational institutions and polytechnics across India selected for the national honour and one of only two recipients from the Northeast.
More significantly for Manipur University, she became the University’s first recipient of the National Award to Teachers.
The national award was presented by President Droupadi Murmu at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi, on Teachers’ Day, September 5.
Dr Lilabati’s academic and artistic career brings together teaching, research and performance. Her work encompasses Manipuri dance and Bharatanatyam, with a particular focus on dance pedagogy and the study and practice of performing arts.
She has around 15 years of experience in teaching, research and academic service and holds a PhD in Dance.
Her work has also taken Manipuri culture beyond the state through performances, academic presentations and cultural engagements in countries including South Korea, Kazakhstan, Tunisia and Myanmar.
Dr Lilabati has previously received the Manipur State Kala Akademi Young Talent Award and is recognised as a Top Grade artist in Manipuri Classical Dance by Prasar Bharati.
The Naad Nartan research award therefore adds another dimension to a series of recognitions spanning her work as a teacher, researcher and performing artist.
For Manipur University, the recognition also places the academic study of dance and performing arts alongside other fields of research receiving attention beyond the state.
