Renowned folk artist Teejan Bai passes away at 70, remembered for elevating Pandavani

Teejan Bai, aged 70, breathed her last at Raipur’s EMS after a period of illness. Born in 1956 near Bilaspur in the village of Ganiyari, she transformed the traditional Pandavani storytelling form—derived from the Mahabharata—into a powerful stage spectacle through her soulful singing and dramatic narration.

Her artistic journey earned her the Padma Shri in 1988, the Padma Bhushan in 2003 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2019, alongside the coveted Sangeet Natak Akademi award and several other honours.