Obituaries

June saw the passing of several figures across literature, cinema, politics, sport and science. This chapter presents each with a little more biographical context than a bare fact-table, since obituary questions in exams often hinge on a specific achievement rather than just the name.

Dr. Bashir Badr (91), the celebrated Urdu poet, passed away in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh. Born in 1935 in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh, he taught at Meerut College until 1990 — widely regarded as the most significant phase of his literary career — and received the Padma Shri in 1999 for his contribution to literature and education, alongside the Sahitya Akademi Award (Urdu) the same year for his ghazal collection Aas, which contains 69 ghazals and remains one of his most celebrated works.

K. P. Dhanapalan (76), senior Congress leader and former Kerala MP, passed away in Paravur, Ernakulam district. Born 14 April 1950, he began his political journey through the Kerala Students Union before rising to prominence in the Indian National Congress in central Kerala.

Suman Kalyanpur (89), veteran playback singer, passed away in Mumbai. Born Suman Hemmady on 28 January 1937 in Dhaka (then Bengal Presidency, British India), she was a Padma Bhushan recipient renowned for her contributions across Hindi, Marathi and regional-language film music.

Marcia Lucas (80), Academy Award-winning film editor, passed away in Rancho Mirage, California. Born 4 October 1945 in Modesto, California, she edited the original Star Wars trilogy and was among the pioneering women editors of Hollywood's "New Hollywood" era.

Pahlaj Nihalani (76), veteran Bollywood producer and former Chairperson of the Central Board of Film Certification, passed away in Mumbai. Born 10 January 1950 in Karachi (present-day Pakistan), he produced numerous successful Hindi films across his career.

Dr. Subhash C. Kashyap (97), constitutional scholar and former Secretary-General of the Lok Sabha, passed away in New Delhi after a prolonged illness. Born 10 May 1929 in Chandpur, Bijnor district, Uttar Pradesh, he joined the Parliament Secretariat in 1953 and served as Lok Sabha Secretary-General from 1983 to 1990, covering the 7th, 8th and 9th Lok Sabhas.

Salim Kumar (56), National Film Award-winning Malayalam actor, passed away in Kochi. Born 10 October 1969 in Chittattukara, he began as a mimicry artist and television comedian before making his film debut in Ishtamanu Nooru Vattam (1997), going on to act in more than 300 films.

Balwinder Singh "Baba" Dhaliwal (67), Arjuna Award-winning shot-putter and Asian Games medallist, passed away in Chandigarh. He received the Arjuna Award in 1987 and was a 10-time National Champion, dominating the event from 1981 to 1992.

Bharathiraja (85), veteran Tamil filmmaker, director, producer, screenwriter and actor, passed away in Chennai. Born Chinnasamy on 17 July 1941 in Theni Allinagaram, Tamil Nadu, he was honoured with the Padma Shri in 2004 for his contribution to the arts.

Princess Bajrakitiyabha Mahidol of Thailand (47), the eldest child of King Maha Vajiralongkorn, passed away — widely known for her work in justice reform, women's rights and prison rehabilitation as a UN Goodwill Ambassador, and a Cornell University-trained lawyer known popularly as "Bha" or "Patty."

Gavri Devi (98), Rajasthani Mand folk singer, passed away in Gavri Nagar, Desuri, Pali district. Born 14 April 1928 in Koran village, Barmer district, she became famed for her rendition of "Kesariya Balam," a song that became emblematic of Rajasthan's cultural identity and hospitality; Mand is a folk-music genre particularly associated with the Marwar region.

Jaspal Rana (49), Padma Shri shooting coach and former Asian Games gold medallist, passed away in New Delhi. Born in 1976 in Uttarakhand, he received the Arjuna Award in 1994 for his own shooting career and the Dronacharya Award in 2020 for his subsequent coaching contribution.

David Hockney (88), celebrated British contemporary artist, passed away at his home in London on 11 June 2026. Born 9 July 1937 in Bradford, West Yorkshire, he was regarded as a leading figure in shaping modern artistic expression across the 20th and 21st centuries.

Lieutenant General Vijay Oberoi (84), former Vice Chief of Army Staff, passed away. Born 29 September 1941 in Chakwal (now in Pakistan), he joined the Indian Army in 1961 through the 1st Battalion, Maratha Light Infantry, and was widely recognised for leading post-Kargil military reforms, revising Army doctrines, and championing the welfare of war-disabled soldiers.

Robert A.F. Thurman (84), American scholar of Tibetan Buddhism and Padma Shri awardee, passed away in New York on 16 June 2026. Born 3 August 1941 in New York City, he earned his Ph.D. from Harvard University and was the first American ordained in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, under the 14th Dalai Lama.

François Englert (93), Belgian theoretical physicist, passed away in Uccle, Brussels. He shared the 2013 Nobel Prize in Physics with Peter Higgs for the theoretical framework leading to the discovery of the Higgs boson — sometimes called the "God Particle" — which advanced understanding of how subatomic particles acquire mass.

K. Bhagyaraj (73), veteran Tamil filmmaker, actor, screenwriter and director, passed away in Chennai. Born Krishnaswamy Bhagyaraj on 7 January 1953 in Gobichettipalayam, Erode district, he began his career as an assistant director under fellow filmmaker Bharathiraja before building his own celebrated body of work.

Chapter 17 Quiz

1. Which Urdu poet, Padma Shri (1999) and Sahitya Akademi Award winner, passed away in Bhopal at 91? — Dr. Bashir Badr
2. Who edited the original Star Wars trilogy and won an Academy Award for it? — Marcia Lucas
3. Which former Lok Sabha Secretary-General and constitutional scholar passed away at 97? — Dr. Subhash C. Kashyap
4. Which Nobel laureate physicist, co-recipient of the 2013 Physics Prize with Peter Higgs, passed away at 93? — François Englert
5. Which shooting coach, Arjuna (1994) and Dronacharya (2020) awardee, passed away at 49? — Jaspal Rana
6. Which Rajasthani folk singer, famed for "Kesariya Balam," passed away at 98? — Gavri Devi
7. Which former Vice Chief of Army Staff, known for post-Kargil military reforms, passed away at 84? — Lieutenant General Vijay Oberoi