President Pranab Mukherjee will be awarding Padma Shri to Thewa Artist – Mahesh Raj Soni tomorrow in New Delhi.

Mahesh, a Thewa artist from South Rajasthan, has been acknowledged as one of the finest in Thewa Art.  Thewa, specialized Art in Jewelry making dates back to the Mughal Period.  It involves embossing of intricately worked-out sheet gold on molten glass.  The Art form evolved in Pratapgarh, a southern district of the state of Rajasthan.

He will be the first to receive a Padma Shri for Thewa Art, the ceremony set to take place in the morning hours on 8^th April at Rashtrapati Bhawan.

Mahesh Raj belongs to the Rajsoni family, where 16 members of the family have kept alive this old art and every family member has at least once, received National and State awards for the same.