Who was Surinder Shinda, veteran Punjabi singer who passed away in Ludhiana?

Veteran Punjabi singer Surinder Pal Dhami, better known as Surinder Shinda, passed away Wednesday after suffering from a prolonged illness at Ludhiana’s Dayanand Medical College and Hospital (DMCH). He was 70. People from the Punjabi music fraternity and several politicians expressed grief over Shinda’s death.

Punjab’s Chief Minister Bhagwat Mann expressed his condolences on X (formerly Twitter), “Very sad to hear the news of the death of famous singer Surinder Shinda ji... The voice of Punjab has gone silent forever”.

Shinda was admitted to DMCH on July 15 and has been on a ventilator since then. DMCH principal head, Dr Dandeep Puri, who treated the singer, said that he was in a critical state at the time of admission and had slipped into a coma. His condition deteriorated by kidney failure.

Shinda is survived by his wife Joginder Kaur and son Maninder Shinda, who is a singer.

Surinder Shinda: From a carpenter’s son to becoming legendary Punjabi singer

Surinder Shindawas born in a carpenter’s family in 1953 in Choti Ayali village, Ludhiana, Punjab. He was a colleague of Kuldeep Manak and also taught music to the late Amar Singh Chamkila, who was a legendary singer himself.

Having had a modest upbringing, Shinda never stopped dreaming of makingit big in the Punjabi music industry. His father, Bachan Ram was his first guru. Shinda’s father being a fine classical singer himself gave Shinda the exposure and environment to groom himself into a class Punjabi singer. He started learning music at the tender age of 4.

In search of a better career, Bachan shifted to Ludhiana and sent Shinda to Government Multipurpose School in Lakkar Bazar in the city. Rajinder Basant, a popular businessman whose Basant Ice-Creams brand is very popular in north India, was his classmate.

After completing higher secondary education, Shinda enrolled for a diploma in mechanical engineering in Ludhiana and briefly worked at a private firm before becoming a full-time singer.

Shinda began his career in singing in 1959 and released more than 160 music albums. His last album was released in 2017, titled Vella.

He gave numerous hit songs during his illustrious career including "Jatt Jeona Morh", "Putt Jattan De", "Truck Billiya", "Balbiro Bhabhi" and "Kaher Singh Di Mout".

In 2013, Shinda was conferred with the Lifetime Achievement award at the Brit Asia TV Music Awards. He was also honoured by the Government of Punjab with the ‘Shiromani Gayak Award’.

(With inputs from agencies)

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