Mumbai: Music composer Vanraj Bhatia passed away after a prolonged illness at the age of 93 at his residence in Nepean Sea Road, Mumbai. The composer is famous for his melodious music in the Indian New Wave cinema of the 70s and 80s. Vanraj Bhatia breathed his last at around 8.30 am this morning (May 7, 2021).
Vanraj Bhatia was also facing financial crisis for the past few years. He was supported by the Indian Performing Rights Society (IPRS), which takes care of the interests of singers, lyricists and musicians. Last year, Vanraj’s old caretaker Sujit absconded with lakhs of rupees.
As soon as the news of Vanraj Bhatia passing away broke out, B’Town celebrities offered condolences to the veteran music composer. Take a look at them here:
Pavan Jha, who has been responsible for raising funds for Vanraj Bhatia told ABP News, “Since the last one month, Vanraj had stopped moving and had become very weak. For the past few days, he was not able to eat or drink properly. Due to COVID-19, the attempt to arrange a doctor to examine him at home also proved to be unsuccessful.”
Recipient of the Padma Shri, Bhatia was the first person to score music for an advertisement film in the country. He then went on to compose more than 7000 jingles. Vanraj’s first feature film score was for Shyam Benegal’s 1974 movie ‘Ankur’. He also composed background scores for movies like ‘Ajooba’, ‘Damini’ and ‘Pardes’.
Vanraj Bhatia also received the National Film Award for Best Music Direction in the Television film ‘Tamas’ which released in the year 1988.
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