Eminent classical singer and music director Padmashri Raghunath Panigrahi passed away here on Sunday after illness for a few months. He was 82 and is survived by two sons.
Panigrahi’s last rites were performed at the Swargadwar at Puri with full State honours in late evening. Born on August 10, 1934 at Gunpur in Koraput district, Panigrahi was a noted vocalist of the Gita Govinda. He had dedicated his life for propagation of the Jagannath cult and promotion of Geeta Govinda. He married renowned Odishi dancer Sanjukta Panigrahi in 1960. After his wife’s death, he founded the Sanjukta Panigrahi Memorial Trust in 1999 to promote Odishi dance. Since 2001, the trust has been giving away scholarships to budding Odishi dancers.
Recipient of many awards, the maestro was awarded Padmashri in 2010 for his outstanding contribution to Indian art and culture. Besides, he was honoured with Sangeet Natak Academy Award. In 2008, he was awarded the prestigious Jayadev Samman. The Ravenshaw University conferred an honorary doctorate on him two days back, on August 23.
Governor SC Jamir, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, PCC president Jayadev Jena, BJP State president KV Singh Deo, MP Baijayant Panda and many other prominent personalities along with eminent figures of the music world mourned his death. “All of us are deeply distressed by the tragic demise of Pandit Raghunath Panigrahi. This will be a tremendous loss to the world of classical music and he will certainly be deeply missed by his many friends and admirers,” the Chief Minister said in his condolence message.