Bengali elecutionist Pradip Ghosh dead, tests COVID-19 positive

Veteran Bengali elocutionist Pradip Ghosh died in his residence here on Friday and tested coronavirus positive after his death, his family sources said. Ghosh died in his sleep Friday morning and his swab tests later confirmed that he was COVID-19 positive, she said. Son of elocutionist Chinmoviban Ghosh, he grew up to be an unparalleled one himself in the late 1960s and gave a new dimension to the recitation of Tagore's poems, specially those for children.

Veteran Bengali elocutionist Pradip Ghosh died in his residence here on Friday and tested coronavirus positive after his death, his family sources said. Ghosh was 78.

He was suffering from fever since Saturday and was under treatment, his daughter said. Ghosh died in his sleep Friday morning and his swab tests later confirmed that he was COVID-19 positive, she said.

Son of elocutionist Chinmoviban Ghosh, he grew up to be an unparalleled one himself in the late 1960s and gave a new dimension to the recitation of Tagore's poems, specially those for children. He was a pioneer in popularising recitation of poetry in public. This spurred the general people to buy tickets to listen to Bengali poetry recitation and buy records by elecutionists like him.

He was a known name in cultural programmes arranged by the expatriate Bengalis in the USA, Australia and the UK. Ghosh, known for his inimitable style, had to his credit scores of CDs and cassettes.

Expressing grief over his death, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said in a statement that he was a "bright star in the world of elocution" and had made the state and Bengalis proud. Recalling that Ghosh was once joint director of information and cultural affairs department and gave valuable guidance and inputs in its functioning, Banerjee said he was the recipient of Kaji Sabyasachi Puraskar in 2017.

She offered her condolences to the bereaved family and his countless admirers. The social media saw an outpouring of grief over Ghosh's death by artistes and fellow elocutionists who called it "the end of an era".