Krishnakumar Kunnath, the Indian superstar popularly known as KK, died of a heart attack shortly after a concert on Tuesday, the Hindustan Times and The Times of India report. He was 53 years old.
Following a performance at Nazrul Mancha auditorium in Kolkata, KK reportedly returned to his hotel and collapsed. He was rushed to Calcutta Medical Research Institute where he was pronounced dead.
Shortly before the cardiac event, his Instagram account posted two photos of the concert. “Pulsating gig tonight at Nazrul Mancha,” he wrote. “Vivekananda College !! Love you all.”
Born August 23rd, 1968, KK’s success was due in no small part to his versatility. He was comfortable performing in many of the most spoken languages in India, including English, Hindi, Bengali, Assamese, Gujarati, Malayalam, Marathi, Tamil, and Telugu.
KK got his start singing advertising jingles before breaking into film in 1996 performing Hindi and Telugu-language versions of the soundtracks for Kadal Desam and Maachis. His debut solo album, Pal, dropped in 1999 and brought him widespread acclaim.
Since then he’s released one more studio album, Humsafar, and several compilations, all while becoming one of the most popular playback singers in Bollywood. Among his biggest hits are “Tadap Tadap’” from 1999’s Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, “Dus Bahane” from 2005’s Dus, and “Tune Maari Entriyaan” from 2014’s Gunday.
His passing was mourned by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “Saddened by the untimely demise of noted singer Krishnakumar Kunnath popularly known as KK,” he wrote on Twitter. “His songs reflected a wide range of emotions as struck a chord with people of all age groups. We will always remember him through his songs. Condolences to his family and fans. Om Shanti.”
Saddened by the untimely demise of noted singer Krishnakumar Kunnath popularly known as KK. His songs reflected a wide range of emotions as struck a chord with people of all age groups. We will always remember him through his songs. Condolences to his family and fans. Om Shanti.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) May 31, 2022
