Hoai Linh received the title of Meritorious Artist, Tu Long was honored as People's Artist

Two stage actors and many colleagues were awarded noble titles for their contributions to the country's arts.

At the end of December, President Truong Tan Sang signed decisions on conferring honorary titles of the State in 2015. There were 101 people who received the title of People's Artist (NSND) and 336 individuals who were awarded the title of Meritorious Artist (NSUT). Of which, the late artist La Thi Cam Van was posthumously awarded the title of NSND for her many contributions to choreography at the Hue Royal Traditional Arts Theatre.

In this award ceremony, comedian Hoai Linh was awarded the title of Meritorious Artist. Previously in March of the year, when the local award council approved his application, the comedian expressed his emotion. He said it was a great honor for an overseas artist to return to his homeland to serve the audience.

In 2015, Meritorious Artist Tu Long received the title "People's Artist" at the age of 43, and artist Hoai Linh was awarded the title "Meritorious Artist".

The list of individuals awarded the title of People's Artist this year includes many artists in their 40s, at the peak of their careers, such as Tu Long (actor of the Army Cheo Theatre, Ministry of National Defense), Trung Hieu (actor of the Hanoi Drama Theatre), Hoang Quynh Mai (director, Vietnam Cai Luong Theatre), singer Dang Duong (New Music Group of the Voice of Vietnam). Among them, comedian Tu Long received the title of People's Artist at the age of 43 for his contributions to the country's culture. He won three gold medals and one-third of the converted gold medals through festivals, and a certificate of merit from the Ministry of National Defense in 2014.

This is the eighth time the State has conferred the title of Meritorious Artist (NSUT) and People's Artist (NSND). The conferment ceremony will take place in January 2016 in Hanoi.

Before submitting to the Government for approval, the State-level Professional Council for awarding titles received 114 applications for the title of People's Artist and 416 applications for the title of Meritorious Artist. The regulations for awarding titles based on criteria such as the number of years of professional experience, the number of medals achieved through festivals... have created mixed reactions. Typically, many opinions say that the cases of artistsChi Trung, Minh Hang... are not qualified to be nominated for the title of People's Artist due to lack of medals, or the medal conversion formula is not satisfactory. Some ethical criteria create ambiguity and cause controversy, such as the cases of choreographer Tuyet Minh, artistThanh Thanh Hien...

People's Artist and Meritorious Artist are titles bestowed by the State to artists who have made many contributions to the cause of building and developing national culture. This is a noble title, only bestowed once in a lifetime to an artist.

According to VNE