India

Punjabi pop singer Labh Janjua, who sang several popular Bollywood songs, was found dead in his Goregaon apartment on Thursday morning.

The cause of his death is not known yet. The Bangur Nagar police have sent his body for examination to the Cooper Hospital in Juhu.

Janjua was a singer and songwriter, best known for his song, Mundiyaan Toh Bach Ke, which was remixed by Panjabi MC in 1998 and re-released in 2002. He had sung Bollywood songs such as Jee Karda from Akshay Kumar-starrer Singh Is Kinng, Dance Pe Chance from Rab Ne Banaa Di Jodi, Soni De Nakhre from Partner, London Thumakda from Queen and Dil Kare Chu Chain from this year’s release Singh Is Bliing.

Police sources said Janjua had been alone at his house for the past few days as his wife and daughter had gone to Punjab. His domestic help reached his house early on Thursday morning and when he did not answer the door, she alerted the neighbours.

The door was broken down and Janjua was found lying on his bed. He was rushed to the Cooper Hospital, where he was declared dead on arrival.

“Janjua had called his wife on Wednesday night and had told her he was feeling uneasy. His wife then called a family friend, who took Janjua to a doctor and then dropped him back home. It is possible that his health worsened during the night. However, we cannot say anything for sure till report of the post-mortem examination arrives,” said Mumbai Police spokesperson and DCP Dhananjay Kulkarni.

A case of accidental death has been registered. “There were no external injuries on Janjua’s body,” said Assistant Commissioner of Police Suresh Shinde.

Salim Merchant tweeted, “Heard about the sudden demise of singer Labh Janjua. What a fab artist… Prayers and condolences to the family #LabhJanjuaRIP”

“Shocked to hear about Labh Janjwa’s untimely demise… Life is so uncertain…,” Shaan posted.

Singer-actor Ayushmann Khurrana said his voice will be missed. “RIP Labh Janjua. Your voice will always remain immortal. It carried the soul of Punjab.”

“Punjabi singer -#LabhJanjua no more! Really shocking news! Life can be so unpredictable,” Harshdeep Kaur posted on Twitter.

The twang of a tumbi and pounding on a dhol, merging into an addictive hook, announced the arrival of Labh Janjhua into the mainstream music scene. The film, Boom, may have tanked, but the song ‘Mundeya toh bach ke’ found much success, playing possibly at every wedding that followed in north India.

While the song can safely be called one of the most popular Punjabi numbers in Bollywood, Janjua had never factored in the success this piece found. “He got in touch with Jackie Shroff, and Boom paved his way into Bollywood,” said Ludhiana-based singer and music video director Ravinder Ranguwal, a friend of Janjua’s. According to his wife Daljeet Kaur, he was suffering from kidney damage and had heart and lung problems. “His heart was functioning at 25 per cent and doctors had advised a bypass, which he rejected,” she said.

Born in 1957 in a village near Ludhiana, Janjua came from a family of farmers. He was drawn to music after listening to his grandfather, Bakhtawar Singh, perform kirtan. When his father asked him to choose between farming and music, he opted for the latter, and made his way to Ludhiana where he started training under musician Jaswant Bhamra. About his early years, Gurbachan Gill, president of Punjabi Sahitya Akademi said, “He would sing boldly in the days of terror, along with another singer Pawandeep.” But it was the song in Boom that established Janjua as the quintessential Punjabi voice in mainstream Bollywood, which was different from the existing voices of Mika Singh and Honey Singh. It still had a touch of folk, which the audience rediscovered in Queen’s ‘London thumakda’ and ‘Jee karda’ from Singh is Kiing.

News Source : PTI and ANI