'He had called me from Kumbh Mela': Udit Narayan mourns the loss of 'elder brother' Shravan, of the Nadeem-Shravan duo

Shravan Kumar Rathod, of the popular composer duo Nadeem-Shravan, died on April 22, due to COVID-19 related complications. The popular music composer had tested positive after he and his wife came back from the Maha Kumbh Mela a few days ago.

Now, singer Udit Narayan, a dear friend of Shravan Rathod and who has worked on many romantic hits with the duo, said that he had spoken with the late composer when he was at the Kumbh.

In an interview with The Times of India, a heartbroken Udit said, "Shravan bhai had gone to the Kumbh Mela recently and had called me from there saying, 'I have come to the Kumbh Mela for the holy bath.' I told him that he should’ve told me about this earlier and that I could have also gone with him. But after he got off the phone, I thought to myself that during the pandemic, why did he go there? He already had health issues, yet he went there. He did not listen to others and went there, and now he is no longer with us. May his soul rest in peace."

Udit further added that he still cannot believe that Shravan bhai is no more. 

He said, "Itna pyara insaan, itna zabardast music director, they (Nadeem-Shravan) ruled the music industry in the 90s. He loved me like an elder brother. Such an artiste, a fankaar humare beech nahi rahe. In these dark times, he has left us."

For the uninformed, Nadeem-Shravan are widely regarded as the musicians who brought back melody in the early nineties with 'Aashiqui', their superhit soundtrack of 1990. Their frequent collaborations with Kumar Sanu resulted in a series of musical successes through the nineties, including 'Dil Hai Ki Maanta Nahin', 'Hum Hain Rahi Pyar Ke', 'Saajan', 'Phool Aur Kaante', 'Sadak', 'Deewana', and 'Pardes'.