Fahimuddin Dagar, golden voice of Dhrupad, falls silent

A golden voice of Indian classical music has fallen silent with the death of Ustad Rahim Fahimudddin Dagar, a doyen of the Dhrupad school who was said to be a descendent of legendary Mughal musician Tansen's guru. He was 84.

A golden voice of Indian classical music has fallen silent with the death of Ustad Rahim Fahimudddin Dagar, a doyen of the Dhrupad school who was said to be a descendent of legendary Mughal musician Tansen's guru. He was 84.

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Dagar died in New Delhi on Wednesday night after battling a long illness at a private hospital, dealing a blow to one of India's oldest musical gharanas that he and his illustrious clan were instrumental in taking to younger audiences across the country and abroad.

Dagar had been admitted to hospital April 23 after a paralytic attack.

The vocalist was a senior exponent of the Dagar Vani Dhrupad school of music. He kept the historic legacy of dhrupad alive with unforgettable performances spanning more than the last six decades.

Dagar is survived by a wife and a daughter.

He was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 2008 and was honoured with the Sangeet Natak Akademi Ratna Puraskar in 2010. He was born in Alwar, Rajasthan, in 1927.