Pankaj Udhas died of pancreatic cancer, singer Anup Jalota has confirmed.
He told Indian Express, “The man who helped so many cancer patients, himself died of cancer. That is life. He had pancreatic cancer. I knew this for the last 5 to 6 months, and he stopped talking to me in the last 2-3 months, so I realized that his health was not okay.”
Pankaj’s daughter, Nayaab Udhas, shared the news of her father’s sad demise through a post on Instagram yesterday, but the published statement only mentioned that he was suffering with prolonged sickness.
Speaking to IANS on another instance, Anup said, “I feel very sad that this illness took his life. I never told anybody about his illness. I knew it would take him, but never imagined that it would be so soon.”
He continued by sharing some words regarding their bond:
“I have lost a very dear friend today. We were friends for 45 years. Spent beautiful evenings together. Me, Pankaj, and Talat were quite famous. We would work together. He has had a major contribution in helping ghazals reach households.”
For almost three decades, their trio had a strong grip on the music industry with exceptionally overpowering performances.
That's why each of them have fan bases numbering in millions worldwide.
Their names are mentioned next to late musicians Mehdi Hassan, Amanat Ali Khan, Jagit Singh, and Ghulam Ali. But now that Pankaj is gone, too, another void is created in the world of ghazals.
