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2012: When entertainment industry lost its many icons

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Press Trust of India New Delhi

The music world lost sitar maestro Ravi Shankar at the age of 92.

The ailing music icon, who was a recipient of the Bharat Ratna in 1999, died after undergoing a heart-valve replacement surgery in a California hospital in December. The three-time Grammy winner is remembered for popularising Indian music in the global arena.

Filmmaker Chopra's death in October came as a shock for Bollywood and his fans. The director seemed full of life as he finished work on his Shah Rukh Khan, Katrina Kaif and Anushka Sharma starrer 'Jab Tak Hai Jaan'.

Chopra had announced his retirement from filmmaking on his 80th birthday, just weeks before his death. He was planning to spend some time with his wife after working endlessly for years but fell victim to dengue fever.

 

The director gave Hindi cinema gems like 'Trishul', 'Deewar', 'Silsila', 'Lamhe', 'Chandni' and 'Dil to Pagal Hai'. His swan song 'Jab Tak Hai Jaan' was released in grand style after his death and did well at the box office.

With the death of yesteryear heartthrob Rajesh Khanna in July this year, the era of innocent romance came to an end in Indian cinema.

The man, who was hailed as Bollywood's first superstar and inspired fanatic devotion among his fans in his hey-days, died peacefully at his home after making several trips to hospital.

At the time of his death at 69, Khanna was a shadow of his former self but death returned his lost glory as fans turned out in huge numbers to make his final journey memorable.

Khanna defined innocence and love through his innumerable hits like 'Aradhana', 'Do Raaste', 'Anand', 'Amar Prem' and 'Safar'.

Film industry lost a familiar face with the demise of character actor Achala Sachdev at the age of 91. The actress, who featured in the famous song 'Aye Meri Zohra Jabeen', started her career as a child actor. She later moved on to character roles of mother and grandmother in films like 'Waqt' and 'Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge'. (MORE)

  

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First Published: Dec 26 2012 | 2:45 PM IST

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