Legendary Bengali singer Sandhya Mukherjee passed away following a massive cardiac arrest on Tuesday, February 15, at SSKM hospital in Kolkata, reported PTI. She was 90.

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Mukherjee, who was known for her melodious voice, worked with leading music directors such as SD Burman, Naushad and Salil
Chaudhury during her career that spanned over 70 years. She is survived by her
daughter, Soumi Sengupta.

Mukherjee was
admitted to the hospital in the last week of January due to her deteriorating
health condition. She was put on vasopressor support earlier in the day as her
blood pressure dropped.

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“She
suffered a massive heart attack at around 7.30 PM following which she
expired,” the senior hospital official was quoted as saying by news agency
PTI.

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The
singer had tested positive for COVID-19 along with cardiac ailments,
multi-organ dysfunction and fracture in the femur bone due to a fall.

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Mukherjee was born on 4 October 1931 in Dhakuria, Calcutta. The youngest of the six sisters, Sandhya Mukherjee had a distinct passion for music since her childhood. She was a trained classical singer and sang many songs for legendary Bengali actress Suchitra Sen.  

During
her illustrious career, she won several awards, including National Film Award
for Best Female Playback Singer. She has thousands of songs in Bengali to her
credit.

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“Deeply
saddened that Geetashree Sandhya Mukhopadhyay, the queen of melody in Bengal,
is no more. Her departure creates an eternal void in our world of music and in
the hearts of millions of her followers here and in the diaspora.” tweeted
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

Recently, she refused the Padma Shri award when she was called by a home ministry official. Since she had refused during the call, her name was not there on the final list. 

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Mukherjee said that it was too late for her to accept the award. “Does anyone give Padma Shri this way? They do not know who I am! Should I take Padma Shri at the age of 90? And will I accept the honour just with a phone call? There is no respect for artistes anymore,” the singer was quoted as saying by Bengali daily Anandabazar Patrika.