Singer Sandhya Mukherjee dies of heart attack at 90 in Kolkata hospital

Legendary Bengali singer Sandhya Mukherjee died on Tuesday evening following a massive heart attack at the age of 90, said an official of the hospital where she was admitted. The singer was in hospital since the last week of January due to ill health.

Sandhya Mukherjee was put on vasopressor support earlier in the day as her blood pressure dropped. “She suffered a massive heart attack at around 7.30 PM following which she expired,” the senior hospital official told PTI.

The singer had tested positive for Covid-19 along with cardiac ailments, multi-organ dysfunction and fracture in the femur bone due to a fall. In January, the singer had complained of breathlessness after which she was rushed to the SSKM Hospital, Kolkata, from her residence.

After visiting her at the hospital then, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee had said, “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.”

Sandhya, who worked with leading music directors such as SD Burman, Naushad, Madan Mohan, Anil Biswas and Salil Chaudhury, is survived by her daughter. The singer had recently refused an offer of a Padma Shri award when she was contacted by central government officials telephonically for her acquiesce.

She was a recipient of Banga Bibhushan, a state government honour, and the National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer. A classical and semi-classical singer, Sandhya has sung for numerous Bengali movies and for a number of Hindi movies.