Legendary Kathak dancer Pandit Birju Maharaj passes away at 83

Birju Maharaj, a living legend of Kathak who had been diagnosed with kidney failure and placed on dialysis, died late Sunday at his residence here. He was 83 years old when he died. He was believed to be playing with his grandchildren when his health suddenly deteriorated, necessitating his being brought to the hospital, where he died of a heart attack.

Maharaj ji was a lifetime Kathak guru as well as a superb Hindustani classical singer and percussionist, and he received the country's second-highest civilian honour, the Padma Vibhushan. His two period dance routines in Satyajit Ray's historical drama Shatranj Ke Khiladi, for which he also sang, and the Kaahe Chhed Mohe track picturized on Madhuri Dixit in the 2002 rendition of Devdas, will be remembered by movie buffs.

He got the National Award for choreographing Unnai Kaanadhu Naan in Kamal Haasan's multilingual megahit Vishwaroopam, as well as the Filmfare Award for the Bajirao Mastani number Mohe Rang Do Laal, featuring Deepika Padukone in Bajirao Mastani.

In a tweet, Adnan Sami, one of the first artists to pay respect to Kathak's doyen, said that the news of the death of legendary Kathak dancer Pandit Birju Maharaj ji has left him devastated. He further tweeted that in the sphere of the performing arts, we have lost an unrivalled institution and Maharaj Ji's brilliance has affected countless generations. Sami concluded by writing, "Rest in peace."

Birju Maharaj was the son of Jagannath Maharaj, also known as Acchan Maharaj, the exponent of the Lucknow gharana, whom he lost when he was nine years old. Shambhu Maharaj and Lacchu Maharaj, two of his uncles, were well-known.

He was a director at both the Shriram Bharatiya Kala Kendra and the Sangeet Natak Akademi Kathak Kendra in Delhi, where he taught.