Bappi Lahiri, veteran music composer, died in a Mumbai hospital on Tuesday at age 69, according to reports citing his doctor.

The singer-composer, a familiar figure for many with his trademark gold chains that he wore for luck and his sunglasses, was known for his songs in several films of the late 70s-80s. These included ‘Chalte Chalte’, ‘Disco Dancer’, and ‘Sharaabi’. 

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Lahiri, whose favourite phrase was ‘Gold is my God’, had said in an earlier interview that he had been heavily influenced by American pop star Elvis Presley, who had worn a gold chain during his concert.

During his visit to Indian Idol 12 as a guest, he had said, “When my first film Zakhmee was a success, my mother gave it to me and since then gold has been very lucky for me as every song was a hit after this. I was also really fascinated with the way Elvis Presley has his own identity and I too decided to have my own, and here I am today.”

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Bappi Da, as he was fondly called, had contested elections in 2014 from the Shrerampur Lok Sabha seat of West Bengal for the BJP. According to the election affidavit, the singer had 754 grams of gold and 4.62 kg of silver.

“I am known for my gold chains. When the remix version of my song Kaliyon ka chaman was released in America, it became an instant hit. The Hollywood press gave me the tag of “Bling Bling Bappi Lahiri”. Now all big hip-hop stars wear big chains and watches like me,” he had told The Telegraph in 2009.

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Gold was lucky for him, he had said, adding that it had become his ‘trademark’, “If some other person is wearing a gold chain, people will say, arre Bappi Lahiri ko nakal kiya. If a singer wears a chain, people compare him to me. Chain means Bappi Lahiri.”

When asked if he was ever afraid of being robbed, he had expressed his immense faith in God, “God is there to protect me. I have a kadha from the Golden Temple too. I believe in all religions. I am a Brahmin. I respect all religions because power is one.”

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His last Bollywood song was ‘Bhankas’ for the 2020 film ‘Baaghi 3’.