On Friday, legendary playback singer SP Balasubrahmanyam breathed his last at MGM Healthcare in Chennai. He was 74.
Soon after the new of his death was confirmed by son SP Charan,who came and announced at the gates of the hospital that SP Balasubrahmanyam passed away at 1:04 pm and thanked all those who prayed for the singer’s recovery, celebrities from the Hindi and Malayalam film industry extended their condolences and mourned the former's demise.
Actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan, in a one-minute clip with his voice-over over a collage of his pictures with the veteran singer, praised the late singer and thanked him for sharing his voice with him.
"During their lifetime, very few legendary artistes get name and fame that matches their level of talent, one among the few is my elder brother from another mother S.P. Balasubrahmanyam. As an SPB fan myself, I bow my head down to his fans who have showered him with their love all through. I thank him for allowing me, as a brother, to bask (a little) in the glorious rain of his fame and greatness," said Haasan.
He captioned the tweet and wrote, "It's my good fortune that I was the shadow image of SPB's voice for a long time. SPB's name and fame would live for seven generations.
Ace director Priyadarshan said SPB would go down as one person who never had any enemies. "We first interacted when he came to sing for my film `Kilukkam`(1991) and after that he sang for my films in various languages. He was a happy go lucky person and never had any airs. A huge loss for all," said Priyadarshan.
SPB sang for numerous Malayalam films and was always a frequent visitor to the state to participate in musical events. Popular singer Sujatha said she just cannot express her feelings as he was such a great human being . "In the industry, he was like a parent to all, as he could gel with all without any issues. Am at a loss to say more," said Sujatha.
M.G.Sreekumar was at a loss to find words to express his emotions about SPB and said he does not wish to believe this news. "I am speechless and feel that the world of music has come to an end. We sang so many songs together. He was such a down to earth human being and that was what people will never ever forget, just like his songs," said Sreekumar.
Actor and singer Krishna Chandran said that it was in 1982 that he first came to meet SPB. " We were part of musician Illayaraja`s music troupe and used to travel by train. Those journeys will always remain etched in my memory as he was such a great human being. In June this year, my daughter who is in Canada sent me a SPB song which she sang. I thought I will send it to SPB. I forwarded it to him with my voice clip, introducing me, as I felt he would have forgotten me. Instantly I got a reply, recalling our old times. I was flattered by his simplicity and humility. SPB was a full package and will go down as the most versatile playback singer as his range was unbelievable," said Chandran.
Hindi film industry stars including Salman Khan, Akshay Kumar, Apuman Kher, Ajay Devgn too mourned his loss.
A Guinness World Record holder, he has six national awards to his credit. A musician, playback singer, music director, actor, dubbing artist and film producer who worked has worked in Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Hindi and Malayalam, he is survived by wife Savithri and two children, daughter Pallavi and a son S. P. B. Charan.
(With inputs from IANS)
