Veteran singer Nirmala Mishra passes away

The veteran singer, who was suffering from age-related ailments for many years, was taken to a nearby nursing home where she was declared brought dead, her family members said.

Her body was taken to Rabindra Sadan around 11am and kept there for the public for paying their last respects. The last rites were performed in the evening. Besides Bengali, she also sang several songs in Odia and Assamese films. While the West Bengal government conferred on her the ‘Sangeet Samman’, ‘Sangeet Mahasamman’ and ‘Bangabhibhushan’ awards, she was given the Sangeet Sudhakar Balakrushna Das Award for her lifetime contribution to the Odia music.

Born in South 24 Parganas in 1938, Mishra enthralled music lovers with her hit songs like ‘O tota pakhi re’, ‘Emon ekta jhinuk khuje pelam na’, ‘Ei Banglar mati te’ among others. Her Odia film songs like ‘Nida bhara raati madhu jhara janha’ and ‘Mo mana beena ra taare’ were iconic. She also had several solo albums to her credit.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee expressed grief over her death.