SUMITRA CHARAT RAM.

SUMITRA CHARAT RAM. Sumitra Charat Ram (17 November 1914 – 8 August 2011)born in Meerut was a noted Indian arts patron, impresario and the founder of Shriram Bharatiya Kala Kendra (SBKK) established in 1952. She played a key role in the revival of performing arts, especially Kathak, in the post-independence era, for which she received a Padma Shri Award. She was the Founder of Shriram Bharatiya Kala Kendra (established 1952) The National Institute of Kathak Dance or Kathak Kendra was originally established as the Kathak wing of the Shriram Bharatiya Kala Kendra in 1955, and was later taken over by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, India's National Academy for Music, Dance and Drama in 1964. She was the wife of industrialist Lala Charat Ram of DCM Shriram Group. Her father-in-law Lala Shri Ram had established educational institutions like Lady Shri Ram College (established 1956), Shri Ram College of Commerce (established 1926). Shri Ram School in Delhi In February 2011, the first 'Sumitra Charat Ram Award for Lifetime Achievement' established by Shri Ram Bhartiya Kala Kendra was awarded to Pandit Birju Maharaj . She died on 8 August 2011 in New Delhi, after a brief illness at the age of 96. Her daughter, Shobha Deepak Singh, continues to run Bhartiya Kala Kendra.