Sandhya Mukherjee, the famed Bengali singer died on Tuesday

Sandhya Mukherjee, the famed Bengali singer who had refused to accept the Padma award last month after a lengthy struggle with COVID, died on Tuesday evening after a catastrophic heart arrest. She was admitted to the hospital on January 27 and was recovering after a protracted illness.

According to a medical bulletin released by the private hospital in Kolkata where Mukherjee died, “Sandhya Gupta (Mukherjee) suffered a sudden cardiac arrest at around 7:30 pm because of an irregular heartbeat and could not be revived. The hospital deeply mourns the passing away of the legendary singer.”

Mamata Banerjee, the Chief Minister of West Bengal, expressed her condolences for Sandhya Mukherjee's death, calling it an "irreparable loss" to the world.

“Deeply saddened that Geetashree Sandhya Mukhopadhyay, the queen of melody in Bengal, is no more. Her departure creates an eternal void in our world of music and in the hearts of millions of her followers here and in the diaspora,” The Chief Minister resorted to Twitter to express his displeasure with the situation.

The singer had tested positive for Covid-19, as well as heart problems, multi-organ malfunction, and a femur fracture caused by a fall. The singer had complained of breathlessness in January and was transported from her home to the SSKM Hospital in Kolkata.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had said at the time, after visiting her in the hospital, "Sandhya-di is Covid positive. She has also been diagnosed with heart-related problems. As Covid patients are not treated at SSKM Hospital, we will shift her to a private hospital. We want Sandhya-di to get the best treatment."

“West Bengal government had conferred Banga Bibhushan to Sandhya Mukherjee in 2011. In 2012 Sangeet Mahasamman and in 2015 Ustad Bade Gulam Ali Saheb’s special award was given to her. She had won a national award in 1971 and also got a BFJ award,” says Mamta Banerjee in a tweet.

Sandhya is survived by her daughter, who collaborated with notable music directors like SD Burman, Naushad, Madan Mohan, Anil Biswas, and Salil Chaudhury. The singer had recently turned down a Padma Shri award when she was contacted by federal government officials over the phone to agree.

She was awarded the Banga Bibhushan by the state government and the National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer by the National Film Academy. Sandhya is a classical and semi-classical singer who has performed in a number of Bengali and Hindi films.

She began her career singing Hindi songs in Mumbai as the youngest of six children, with a song in the film Taarana in 1950. She appeared in 17 Hindi films as a playback vocalist.

Soon after, in 1952, the singer went to Kolkata and secured her spot in the Bengali music industry, partnering with Bengali vocalist Hemanta Mukherjee on a number of notable duets.

Sandhya Mukherjee, for example, won the National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer in 1970 for her songs in the films Jay Jayanti and Nishi Padma.

The Padma Awards this year also saw renowned actor Victor Banerjee receive the Padma Bhushan and singer Sonu Nigam receive the Padma Shri.

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