New Delhi - Leading Indian classical vocalist Gangubhai Hangal died Tuesday at a hospital after a brief illness, a news report said. She was 97. A doyenne of Hindustani classical music, Hangal was suffering from severe chest congestion and anaemia, the PTI news agency reported.
She had been undergoing hospital treatment in Hubli, a town in the southern state of Karnataka, since July 14.
The singer, who was widely regarded as a musical genius, mesmerized audiences with her melodious voice for more than six decades.
She was awarded India's highest awards for contribution to music, including the prestigious Sangeet Natak Akademi and Tansen awards.
Hangal also won India's top civilian honours, the Padma Bhushan and Padma Vibhushan awards.
Her demise was mourned by the Indian music community which said Hangal reached the pinnacle of music, battling poverty and defying gender and caste barriers in the conservative, pre-independence India.
The daughter of a low-caste boatman, she took to singing although it was looked down upon as a vocation in conservative Hindu society.
Although she married a high-caste Brahmin later, she always remained frank about her origins.
"I was born in pre-independent India, a period when caste discrimination was rampant," Hangal once told The Hindu newspaper, adding, "They were difficult times. But I'm grateful to music in more than one way. It gave me a unique identity and pushed all other identities to the background."
Hangal is survived by three sons and two daughters.
