Noted Singer Sunanda Patnaik Dies at 85

Pramit Pramathes, Bhubaneswar: Eminent Odia classical singer, Sunanda Patnaik took her last breath at a private hospital in Kolkata today. She was 85.

Sunanda was hospitalized due prolonged illness and breathed her last while undergoing treatment, family sources said. Sunanda, born on 1934, started singing at All India Radio, Cuttack in 1948 at the teen age.

She had been staying in Kolkata since 1983. She was the daughter of noted Odia poet Baikunthanath Patnaik. She had received Odisha Sangeet Natak Akademi award in 1970 and 1971. She was also the recipient of Tagore Akademi Puraskar for the year 2012 and received doctorate from Utkal University.