Post News Network
Bhubaneswar, Sept 21: Noted Oriya lyricist Nizam passed away at Apollo Hospital here Monday after a prolonged illness, his family said. He was 62 and is survived by his wife, a son and a daughter.
Earlier, authorities at Apollo Hospital where he was undergoing treatment refused to hand over his body till all bills were cleared and held up his body for at least four hours, state tourism and culture minister Ashok Panda said.
The body was handed over to the family only after Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik personally intervened, said Panda, who was among the dignitaries to pay his respects to the lyricist.
Apollo Hospital however washed their hands of the incident. “Delay in handing over Nizam’s body is not because of any fault on our part. We handed over the body to the family after they gave a written undertaking that the dues would be cleared,” said hospital general manager Dr Hirendra Nath.
Nizam’s body was taken to his residence at Sutahat in Cuttack where eminent musicians, singers and relatives paid their last respects. He was later laid to rest at Dargha Bazar.
Music lovers and personalities from various walks of life rushed to the hospital in the morning to pay their last tributes to the departed soul. Sources said Nizam had undergone kidney transplant and was under dialysis. However, he died of cardiac arrest while being treated in the hospital.
Nizam has written many melodious album songs which had touched the hearts of millions of Oriya people, particularly the youths.
He had also major contributions to the Oriya bhajan genre.
A number of actors and music lovers had paid tribute to the great lyricist stating that his death had caused a vacuum which would never be filled.
The lyricist, who had started his career in 1977, had suffered chronic renal failure in 2009 and underwent kidney transplant in the same year in Hyderabad. His wife Gulshan had donated a kidney to him.
Film industry bigwigs and fans expressed grief at his death. “It is a big loss for the state,” said eminent singer Prafulla Kar.
“Though Nizam was born in a Muslim family, he used to write devotional songs for Lord Jagannath. We call him present day Sala Beg,” said noted film director Sanjay Nayak. ‘Mu Jie Eka Pagala Bhanara’ and ‘Hrudaya Ra Ehi Sunyata Ku’ are some of his most memorable songs.