For India, the year 2024 was emotionally strenous as the country lost some of its influential personalities belonging to various fields, including politics, business, music and entertainment. While the death of Dr Manmohan Singh created a void in the field of politics, the demise of Tabla maestro Zakir Hussain came as a shock to the music and entertainment industry.

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Following are some of the prominent personalities who passed away in 2024:

Dr Manmohan Singh

India's first Sikh prime Minister and the man behind economic reforms in the country, Dr Manmohan Singh died at the age of 92 on Thursday (Dec 26) at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) after being admitted for age-related issues. He was cremated at the Nigambodh Ghat in New Delhi with full state honours on Saturday (Dec 28).

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Singh was the prime minister of the country for two consecutive terms from 2004-2009 and 2009-2014 under the UPA (United Progressive Alliance) government led by Congress's Sonia Gandhi. 

Also Read: Manmohan Singh: An ‘accidental PM’ who pulled out Indian economy from doldrums

He is also hailed as the architect of economic reforms in the country. As finance minister in 1991 under the Congress government of PV Narasimha Rao, Singh introduced radical reforms in his first Union Budget of 1991-92 with a focus on ‘liberalisation’ and ended the 'licence raj', opening the gates for private players and multinational companies in India. This revived the Indian economy that was in deep crisis.

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Ratan Tata

Ratan Naval Tata, former chairman of the Tata Group, one of India's biggest conglomerates, passed away on October 9 at the age of 86. Tata remained as the chairman of the company for 20 years, from 1991 to 2002 and for a brief period in 2016. 

After taking over the conglomerate from his uncle JRD Tata, Ratan Tata took the group to great heights. There were several mergers and acquisitions that happened under him. Buying Jaguar Land Rover from Ford in June 2008 was one of the major investments by the company during his time. This acquisition turned out to be a big turning point for the Indian automotive industry.

Looking at his achievements, the government of India awarded him the Padma Bhushan in the year 2000 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2008. 

Zakir Hussain

A global music icon, Tabla maestro Zakir Hussain, passed away on December 15 in San Francisco at the age of 73. According to his family members, he was suffering from idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. Hussain redefined Indian classical music by blending traditional tabla rhythms with global genres for which he got international acclaim. He is a recipient of Padma Shri, Padma Bhushan and Padma Vibhushan awards conferred by the government of India. Notably, he is also a four-time Grammy winner. He is credited with bringing the Indian classical music to a global audience.

Hussain is survived by his wife, Antonia Minnecola, his daughter Anisa Qureshi and Isabella Qureshi.

Pankaj Udhas

Renowned ghazal singer Pankaj Udhas passed away in February at the age of 72 due to prolonged illness. Udhas, along with fellow musicians Jagjit Singh, Anup Jalota, Talat Aziz and Bhupender Singh, played a pivotal role in popularising Ghazals among the masses of the country.

Also Read: How 2024 gave a reality check to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi 

Some of Udhas's popular Ghazals are Chandi Jaisa Rang Hai Tera, Ek Taraf Uska Ghar, Niklo Na Benakab. He also sang in a few Bollywood movies and gained huge popularity for those songs. Chitthi Ayi Hai from the film Naam released in the year 1986 and Jiye to Jiye Kaise from Saajan in 1991 were among his huge hits.

Sharda Sinha

Bhojpuri folk and classical singer Sharda Sinha, who was regarded as the "Kokila of Bihar" and "Begum Akhtar of Mithila" died in November at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi, after battling with cancer. Sinha is the recipient of the Padma Shri (1991) and the Padma Vibhushan (2018) awards.

Sinha in her career has recorded over 60 Chhath songs across nine albums under popular music labels like T-Series, HMV and Tips. She has also sung a few songs in Bollywood among which popular ones are "Kahe Toh Se Sajna" from Maine Pyar Kiya, "Taar Bijli" from Anurag Kashyap's critically acclaimed Gangs of Wasseypur Part 2 and "Babul Jo Tumne Sikhaya" from the film Maine Pyaar Kiya.