Legendary classical singer Pandit Jasraj passed away on Monday after suffering a cardiac arrest. He was 90. Following the news condolences have begun pouring in from all quarters as many recalled their favourite memories and/or favourite songs.
Joining the mourners, sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik opted to pay tribute in his own special way. "My heartfelt condolences at the passing away of legendary Indian classical vocalist Padma Vibhushan Pandit Jasraj Ji. His demise is a huge loss to the world of Indian classical music," he tweeted.
Pattnaik also shared a sand sculpture created by him earlier to honour the singer. The photo shared by him depicts Pandit Jasraj with the solar system behind him. The moon, earth, sun and Jupiter are marked, as is a small orb labelled as ‘Panditjasraj’.
In case you were confused by that, Pandit Jasraj has a minor planet named after him. Discovered between Mars and Jupiter in November 2006 it was then named after the singer. The International Astronomical Union had dubbed minor planet 2006 VP32 (number -300128) as ‘Panditjasraj’.
The number (300128) is also his birth date in reverse.
This is not the first time Pattnaik has created a sand art tribute. Events and milestones - both global and Indian have been immortalised in sand by the artist over the years. Hours earlier he had paid tribute to the retirements of Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Suresh Raina.
