Ghazal icon Pankaj Udhas passes away from prolonged illness
mellifluous voice that gave birth to chartbusters such as ‘Chitthi Aayi Hai’, ‘Ahista’, ‘Halki Halki Si Baarish’, etc has been muted forever.
Legendary ghazal singer Pankaj Udhas breathed his last on Monday. He was 73. He was reportedly suffering from a prolonged illness. His family confirmed the sad news to the public. “With a very heavy heart, we are saddened to inform you of the sad demise of Padma Shri Pankaj Udhas on 26th February 2024 due to a prolonged illness. Udhas family,” the statement read.
The star’s representative toldIndian Express, “Pankaj sir was suffering from a prolonged illness and wasn’t keeping well the last few days. He died this morning around 11 am at Breach Candy hospital.”
Who Was Pankaj Udhas?
One of the most celebrated ghazal singers of India, Udhas effortlessly straddled two music industries — classical ghazal sangeet and indie-pop throughout his four-decade career. Born in a musically inclined Gujarati family, Udhas was the youngest of three brothers. His siblings, Manhar and Nirmal are well-known playback and ghazal singers.
Udhas became an overnight sensation when his debut album ‘Aahat’, which was released in 1980, became a huge success. In the late 1980s, his fame skyrocketed even more when he collaborated with Bollywood’s ‘Nightingale’, Lata Mangeshkar for the melodious duet ‘Mahiya Teri Kasam’ for the Sunny Deol-starrer ‘Ghayal’. Some of the films where he contributed as a playback singer include, ‘Saajan’, ‘Yeh Dillagi’, ‘Naam’ etc. In particular, the melancholic track
