 In 1962, he was awarded the Sangeet Naatak Akademi Fellowship conferred by Sangeet Naatak Akademi, India's National Academy for Music, Dance and Drama.Papanasam Sivan's early years were spent in the Travancore area of Kerala where the kings patronised fine arts.He was born at Polagam village in the district of Thanjavur, which was home to the musical trinity of Carnatic music.