NEW DELHI: Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday expressed 'deep grief' over the passing away of Ghazal legend Mehdi Hassan.
Singh said Hassan brought the sub-continental Sufi sensibilities to life through his songs.
"The influence of his passion for Urdu poetry and initial grooming in Dhrupad tradition earned for him a special place in the world of music," said a statement issued on behalf of the PM.
"The Prime Minister extends his condolences to the bereaved members of Shri Mehdi Hassan's family," said the statement.
Ghazal maestro Mehdi Hassan passed away in a Karachi hospital on Wednesday. He was 84.
He was suffering from lungs and chest ailments, said doctors.
The Pakistani ghazal singer, who was equally popular in India and other parts of the world for his singing, was born on July 18 ,1927 in a village called Luna in Rajasthan, India into a family of traditional musicians.
He is famously known as the 'King of Ghazals'.
He was honoured with Tamgha-e-Imtiaz, Pride of Performance and Hilal-e-Imtiaz by the Government of Pakistan, and Gorkha Dakshina Bahu by the Government of Nepal.
Hassan mesmerized his listeners with his soul-touching ghazals in his glorious career that lasted several years.