Prez, PM condoles the demise of Kathak maestro Pandit Birju Maharaj

 

New Delhi: President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi have expressed anguish over the sudden death of Pandit Birju Maharaj. The legendary Kathak dancer Brij Mohan Nath Mishra, popularly known as Pandit Birju Maharaj, has passed away on Monday at the age of 83, after being under treatment for the past one month.

 

In his tweet, PM Modi acknowledged Pandit Birju Maharaj’s remarkable contribution to the Indian dance form. ‘Extremely saddened after learning about the demise of Pandit Birju Maharaj, who gave Indian art a special recognition across the globe. It’s an irreparable loss to the entire art world. My heartfelt condolences to his family and fans. Om Shanti’, PM Modi tweeted.

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— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) January 17, 2022

 

‘The demise of legendary Pandit Birju Maharaj marks the end of an era. It leaves a deep void in the Indian music and cultural space. He became an icon,  who was the one who have the Indian art form of Kathak a special recognition across the globe. Condolences to his family and admirers’, the President tweeted.

The demise of legendary Pandit Birju Maharaj marks the end of an era. It leaves a deep void in the Indian music and cultural space. He became an icon, making unparalleled contribution to popularise Kathak globally. Condolences to his family and admirers.

— President of India (@rashtrapatibhvn) January 17, 2022

 

‘He was under treatment for the past month. He had sudden breathlessness at around 12:15 – 12:30 am last night; we brought him to the hospital within 10 minutes, but he passed away’, his granddaughter Ragini Maharaj was quoted by ANI. A descendant of the Maharaj family of Kathak dancers, Pandit Birju Maharaj has also choreographed several songs in Bollywood such as ‘Kaahe Chhede Mohe’ (Devdas), ‘Mohe Rang Do Laal’ (Bajirao Mastani) and many more. He was also honoured with Padma Vibhushan for his contribution to Indian art.

 

A number of artistes and politicians, including singer Adnan Sami, Rahul Gandhi and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, took to Twitter to mourn the demise of Birju Maharaj.