SP Balasubrahmanyam died at 74 in Chennai hospital last week (File)
Hyderabad:
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy has called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi to bestow the Bharat Ratna – India’s highest civilian honor – on legendary singer SP Balasubrahmanyam, who died in Chennai on Friday.
In a moving letter to the Prime Minister, Mr Reddy said the versatile singer left a profound impact on the global music industry over a career spanning five decades, and that his contributions “can be measured by the continuous flow of rich music tributes. aficionados (from) all over the world “.
“The endless saga of his astounding achievements goes beyond music. With his unmatched talent, Sri SP Balasubrahmanyam has taken the compositions to sublime levels. His untimely departure has not only caused much distress to fans and celebrities alike. in India, but also affected the international music fraternity, “wrote the chief minister of Andhra Pradesh.
Pointing out that a host of other pillars of music, such as Lata Mangeshkar, Bhupen Hazarika, Bismillah Khan and Bhimsen Joshi, had all been equally honored, Mr Reddy said that a Bharat Ratna would be the “most high recognition for his outstanding work “.
SP Balasubrahmanyam, who had been hospitalized since August 5, died at MGM Healthcare Hospital in Chennai. He tested negative for COVID-19 earlier this month. He was 74 years old.
Tributes poured in from across the country – Lata Mangeshkar, Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan, Rajinikanth, Kamal Haasan, AR Rahman were among those who paid tribute.
Upon hearing of his death, Prime Minister Modi declared that “our cultural world is much poorer”.
Sports stars like Viswanathan Anand and the IPL Chennai Super Kings franchise also paid tribute.
The funeral of SP Balasubrahmanyam took place on Saturday at his farm near Chennai, with police honors.
A recipient of the Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan, SP Balasubrahmanyam has sung over 40,000 songs in 16 languages and won six national awards.
