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Santoor player Pandit Bhajan Sopori dies at 74 after battle with colon cancer; Delhi based musician-singer Sheil Sagar passes away at 22 due to unknown causes

After singer Krishnakumar Kunnath aka KK’s untimely demise, there are two more deaths that have jolted the music industry. Santoor maestro Pandit Bhajan Sopori passed away at 74 years after a battle with colon cancer and Delhi musician Sheil Sagar passed away at 22 years due to unknown causes.

Read on for more details:

Santoor player Pandit Bhajan Sopori dies at 74 after battle with cancer

Santoor player and renowned music composer Pandit Bhajan Sopori died on Thursday, June 2, 2022. He was 74-years-old and was undergoing treatment at Fortis Hospital in Gurugram for cancer. Pandit Bhajan Sopori hailed from Kashmir and was a Padma Shri recipient. His last rites will be held at Lodhi Road crematorium in Delhi today. Sopori is survived by his wife and two sons- Abhay (also a santoor player) and Sorabh. Abhay gave details about his father’s ill health to a news agency and said, “He was diagnosed with colon cancer last year in June. We admitted him to Fortis, Gurugram, three weeks back for immunotherapy treatment. It didn't work for him and his health deteriorated.”

Sopori had received multiple awards in his career, including Padma Shri in 2004, the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1992 and the Jammu and Kashmir Lifetime Achievement Award in 2016. He learned western classical music from Washington University and Hindustani music from his father and grandfather. He is the second santoor player to pass away recently after the demise of Pandit Shivkumar Sharma.

RECOMMENDED READ: KK laid to rest; wife Jyoti, son Nakul and daughter Taamara bid him emotional goodbye

Delhi musician Sheil Sagar dies at 22 due to unknown causes

Sheil Sagar, a 22-year-old Delhi-based musician and singer passed away due to unknown reasons on Wednesday, June 1. The news of his death was confirmed on social media by his friends and other musicians from Delhi. Sharing the news of his demise, a Twitter user tweeted, “Today is a sad day... first KK and then this beautiful budding musician who had us in awe with his rendition of my favourite song #wickedgames.. may you rest in peace #SheilSagar.” Sheil became popular within the Indian independent music scene in Delhi after his acoustic single If I Tried (2021) became a hit. As per media reports, his song had over 40,000 streams on Spotify alone. He is also known for Before It Goes, Still and Mr Mobile Man- Live. According to Rolling Stones report, Sheil played the piano, guitar and saxophone and had a low-baritone voice. He was also the former vice-president of the music society of Hansraj College.

(Source: PTI/Twitter)

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