For singer Adnan Sami, being conferred with Padma Shri has been an “unparalleled honour”. Sami describes the moment as “ethereal” and elaborates, “When I was sitting there (Rashtrapati Bhavan) and waiting for the ceremony to begin, I was absorbing the environment. I had a flashback of everything I’ve been through in my life as a person and artiste.”

The 50-year-old shares that the honour has “inspired and rejuvenated” him “with more enthusiasm”. He adds, “When somebody praises you, it makes you want to do even better. It’s a beautiful blessing that I’ve been given the award at this age. I want to believe that there’s another life in front of me and I feel the responsibility to do and share more.”

In 2016, Sami was granted Indian citizenship by the government. And so, this honour is even more special. “The most important thing to take from this is that art is above anything else,” says the Bhar Do Jholi Meri (Bajrangi Bhaijaan; 2016) singer, adding, “I started my journey in London and then moved to Portugal and then came to India. Who would have thought that I would get such a prestigious honour! It goes to show that if you believe in anything, remain focused and work hard, you will never go unnoticed.”

Another memory that Sami will cherish from the day is his four-year-old daughter Medina posing before the TV screen when Sami received the award. “She watched it live and made sure that she gets photographed in front of the TV while I was getting the award. I’m happy that we got that moment on camera,” he ends with a laugh.