Renowned Hindustani classical vocalist Pt Rajan Mishra died of COVID-19 complications at a hospital here on Sunday evening, shortly after friends and well-wishers put out SOS messages on social media looking for a ventilator for him. He was 70.
Mishra, one of the foremost exponents of khayal gayaki along with his brother Sajan Mishra, had been at the St Stephen’s Hospital for the last three days, his son Rajnish said.
“He died of a heart attack around 6.30. We were trying for a ventilator but nobody supported us, nothing in any hospital. Later, the PMO reached out to help but he had left us by then,” Rajnish told PTI.
Mishra is survived by his wife and three children, daughter Anju and sons Ritesh and Rajnish, who like their father and uncle, are singers.
The family had tried to shift Mishra to a hospital with a ventilator with well-wishers sending out messages on Twitter but to no avail. The musician’s condition worsened and he could not be shifted.
Mishra’s nephew Amit told PTI that the musician, who was suffering from COVID-19, had taken the first dose of the vaccine about 15-20 days ago.
“He had a heart attack in the afternoon and he had another attack at around 5.30,” Amit added.
The hospital did not respond to queries from PTI.
Mishra was awarded the Padma Bhushan. The brothers belonged to the Banaras gharana. News of the death of the singer sent shockwaves through the world of music and elsewhere too.