Zakir Hussain (1951–2024), renowned Indian tabla player

Zakir Hussain was an icon of Indian classical music and world fusion, widely considered one of the world’s greatest tabla players.

Pamela Salem (1944–2024), Miss Moneypenny in Never Say Never Again

Pamela Salem was a British actress best known for her work alongside in “The First Great Train Robbery” and the unofficial James Bond film “Never Say Never Again,” and for her appearances on the TV science fiction show “Doctor Who.”

M. S. Swaminathan (1925–2023), led India’s “green revolution”

Mankombu Sambasivan Swaminathan was an agricultural scientist, plant geneticist, and humanitarian whose work and leadership during India’s “green revolution” helped fight famine.

Raghavan Iyer (1961–2023), chef who brought Indian cooking to the U.S.

Raghavan Iyer was a chef who helped popularize cooking the cuisines of his native India in the U.S.

Ali Ahmed Aslam (1945–2022), Chicken Tikka Masala inventor

Ali Ahmed Aslam was a restaurant owner in Glasgow, Scotland who was credited with inventing the popular Indian dish Chicken Tikka Masala.

Dervla Murphy (1931–2022), bicycled from Ireland to India

Dervla Murphy was an Irish travel writer whose books included “Full Tilt: Ireland to India with a Bicycle.”

Bappi Lahiri (1952–2022), India’s “Disco King”

Bappi Lahiri was a popular Bollywood singer and composer who was known as the “Disco King” of India.

Narinder Kapany (1926–2020), physicist who co-invented fiber optics

Narinder Kapany was a physicist known as the “father of fiber optics,” who was one of the inventors of fiber optics technology.

Air India Express Plane Crash Victims (2020)

An Air India Express Boeing 737 crashed at the Calicut airport in the southern state of Kerala, killing at least 16 people, officials told the BBC. The plane took off from Dubai, carrying passengers back to India who had been stranded during the coronavirus pandemic. There were 84 passengers and 7 crew members aboard. The plane was evacuated and those injured were taken to hospitals.

Siya Kakkar (2020), TikTok star

Siya Kakkar was a TikTok star from India with over a million followers who was known for her Indian music and dance videos.   

Rishi Kapoor (1952–2020), Bollywood romantic star

Rishi Kapoor was an Indian actor known for starring in over 100 Bollywood films. He was a romantic lead, singing and dancing for 30 years before transitioning into an acclaimed character actor.

Irrfan Khan (1967–2020), Bollywood icon who costarred in “Life of Pi” and “Slumdog Millionaire”

Irrfan Khan was an actor who was well known for his work in Bollywood films as well as for roles in “Life of Pi,” “Slumdog Millionaire,” and other Hollywood films.

Ram Dass (1931–2019), spiritual guru

Ram Dass was a beloved spiritual guru who was a pioneer of the 1960s psychedelic drug movement. Born Richard Alpert in Boston, Massachusetts, Dass was a psychologist who taught at Harvard. There he became friends with Timothy Leary and the two studied the therapeutic effects of psychedelic drugs, leading to their dismissal from the school. Alpert went on a journey to India in 1968 and came back with the name Ram Dass. He became a central figure in Eastern spiritual thinking and his 1971 book “Be Here Now” became a counter-culture classic.

Sikh Funeral Service Rituals

Will you be attending a Sikh funeral for the first time? Here is an overview of the general Sikh customs and traditions surrounding death, burial, and mourning to be aware of when attending a funeral.

Sridevi (1963 – 2018), Bollywood's first female superstar

Known for her dancing and comic timing…

Om Puri (1950 - 2017), actor in Gandhi, City of Joy

Acclaimed Indian actor Om Puri appeared in hit films including "Gandhi," "City of Joy," and "East Is East."

Thaddeus Farrow (1988 - 2016), Mia Farrow's son

Thaddeus Farrow, a son of actress and activist Mia Farrow, died Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2016, in an auto accident in Danbury, Connecticut, according to multiple news sources. He was 27. State police found him in a car. He was pronounced dead after being taken to a hospital, where he was being treated for serious injuries, according to reports. Police have reportedly ruled out foul play. Farrow adopted Thaddeus, who had polio as a child and is paraplegic, from an orphanage in 1994 in Kolkata, India. Farrow adopted him after she split from the legendary director Woody Allen.

Kolkata Overpass Accident Victims

At least 14 people were killed Thursday near the Indian city of Kolkata following the collapse of an overpass onto traffic moving along the street below, authorities said. More than 100 others were reported missing or unaccounted for. The Vivekananda Road overpass has been under construction since 2009. An eyewitness told reporters that hundreds of people, many in vehicles, were beneath the overpass at the time of the accident. The Indian army has deployed rescuers, according to a tweet from a representative of the Indian Ministry of Defense. Two cranes were brought in to lift heavy debris off the cars, trucks and other vehicles that were trapped underneath.

Lovers’ Mourning Customs in History

All deaths are difficult, but the loss of a romantic partner is one of the toughest. Some couples die within hours, days or weeks of each other — a phenomenon researchers say is very real. But there are even more survivors who must figure out how to move forward.

Remembering the Columbia Seven

Ten years ago today, the world witnessed a disaster when the disintegrated on reentry after a successful mission, killing the seven astronauts aboard. It was a shocking tragedy, leaving us to mourn yet another shuttle crew as we did in 1986 after the exploded shortly after lift-off.

Ravi Shankar's Rock 'n' Roll

We remember the sitar master who influenced countless musicians from the Beatles to John Coltrane.

Jiddu Krishnamurti: The Guru Who Wasn’t

Though he refused to consider himself any kind of religious authority, Jiddu Krishnamuriti became one of the 20th century’s leading spiritual philosophers.