Obituary

Wagh Bakri Tea Group chairman Piyushbhai Desai passes away at 86

Wagh Bakri Tea Group chairman Piyushbhai Desai, who combined business with Gandhian values, philanthropy and social responsibility, passed away on September 15, the tea group said in a statement. He was 86. Desai was associated with the tea trade for over six decades and played a significant role in taking Wagh Bakri beyond its Gujarat roots and expanding its presence across multiple states, the obituary note issued by Wagh Bakri Tea Group said. Desai was known for his expertise in tea and his approach to business based on quality, integrity, long-term relationships and collective growth, the group said. Former Gujarat Vidyapith vice chancellor Sudarshan Iyengar remembered him as an entrepreneur who reflected the ideals envisioned by Mahatma Gandhi, and was "entirely self-made and a top-class tea taster himself". Desai's connection with Gandhi stemmed from his grandfather, who had met the Mahatma in South Africa, and because of this ancestral connection, helping people through the

Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Pilgrim at Tinker Creek dies at 81

With the publication of Pilgrim at Tinker Creek in 1974, Dillard, just 28, was recognised as a major new voice in American letters.

Two-time Grammy-winning jazz singer Cassandra Wilson dies at 70

Two-time Grammy Award-winning jazz singer, songwriter and producer Cassandra Wilson has died at the age of 70, with the Hinds County Coroner Jeramiah Howard confirming that she died in her native Jackson, Mississippi, according to Page Six. Wilson's manager, in a statement to jazz radio station WBGO, said the singer "transitioned peacefully at home, surrounded by family, close friends, and her manager.""It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of Cassandra Wilson, the Grammy Award-winning and legendary jazz artist," the statement said, as per the outlet. Described by Time magazine in 2001 as America's best singer, Wilson was known for her genre-bending style that expanded the boundaries of traditional blues-based jazz. Her music incorporated elements of folk, pop, R & B, country and other genres, while her distinctive contralto remained central to her sound.Jon Batiste, in a eulogy on Wednesday, described Wilson's voice as one that sounded like "the South."Born and

Gloria Steinem, US feminism icon and Ms Magazine co-founder, dies at 92

Gloria Steinem, the celebrated author and activist who became one of the most visible symbols and potent voices of the US women's movement and a fierce advocate for feminist causes throughout her life, has died. She was 92. With her trademark streaked hair parted down the middle and large aviator glasses, Steinem, a co-founder of Ms Magazine, was a hugely recognisable presence wherever she went. And she went everywhere: Much of her life as an advocate was spent on the road, speaking at college campuses and community centres, at rallies and marches. She died Wednesday at her home in New York City, according to her and her foundation's social media pages. "Gloria's greatest gift was her ability to listen to others, to make others feel seen and heard," the posts said. "Her words, actions, and example gave people permission to be their truest selves. Gloria lived true to her independent spirit, always with curiosity and a great sense of humour." Steinem enjoyed writing and spending tim

Obituary: Author, farmer and environmentalist, Wendell Berry dies at 92

Berry was a prolific writer who published more than 40 books, including the novels Nathan Coulter and A Place on Earth, and the short story collection Stand By Me.

Obituary: Norway's reform-minded head of state, King Harald V, dies at 89

Harald, who was Europe's oldest living monarch, was taken to hospital on August 17. The palace said he was being treated for a bacterial infection in his blood.

Tim Curry, English actor of 'Rocky Horror', 'Clue' and 'It', dies at 80

A cause of death was not immediately given, but Curry had been in ill health ​for some time. He died peacefully on Tuesday at his home in Los Angeles, his manager said

Grammy winner and queen of country music Dolly Parton dies at 80

With classic songs including "Coat of Many Colors," "Jolene" and "I Will Always Love You," she became one of the best-selling female artists of all time, with over 100 million records sold.

Zhu Rongji: Fmr premier who was the architect of economic overhaul in China

A young Communist star in the 1950s, Zhu was expelled from the party in one of Mao Zedong's ideological purification campaigns.

Jurassic Park star Sam Neill who declined Knighthood but reneged later

Neill first came to international attention with the 1979 Australian period drama My Brilliant Career playing a frontier rancher

Datanomics: S Janaki, the Nightingale of South, sings into sunset

Legendary playback singer S. Janaki, the 'Nightingale of South India', leaves behind an unmatched musical legacy spanning six decades and over 48,000 songs

Bonnie Tyler: Voice that minted 1980s pop anthems like Total Eclipse

Welsh singer Bonnie Tyler, whose powerhouse voice defined 1980s hits such as Total Eclipse of the Heart and Holding Out for a Hero, has died at 75

Padma Vibhushan awardee and Pandavani legend Teejan Bai dies at 70

Padma Vibhushan awardee Teejan Bai, who took Chhattisgarh's Pandavani tradition to audiences across the world, died at AIIMS Raipur after a prolonged illness

Vijaya Mehta: An icon who gave theatre and cinema her own vocabulary

Vijaya Mehta, the pioneering force behind modern Marathi theatre and acclaimed arthouse films, leaves behind an enduring legacy of artistic innovation

Om Malik: Tech journalist whose blog shaped how Silicon Valley saw itself

Technology journalist and GigaOm founder Om Malik helped redefine Silicon Valley coverage through independent blogging, incisive commentary and influential reporting

Clive Davis, architect of Columbia and Arista's success, dies at 94

The influential record executive helped build Columbia into a music powerhouse, launched Whitney Houston's career and revived the fortunes of several legendary artists

Alan Greenspan, who led Fed during boom before 2008 bust, dies at 100

Greenspan, who led the US Federal Reserve from 1987 to 2006, was celebrated for steering economic expansion but later faced criticism over the financial crisis that followed

Renaissance, American pop: Man who restored the human form to art

Artist David Hockney, whose paintings of pools shimmering in the Los Angeles sunshine became icons of 20th-century art, died Thursday, his publicist said. He was 88. Hockney was born in the north of England but lived much of his life in Southern California, making its sun-drenched suburban views a major motif. Later in life he returned to Europe, finding renewed inspiration in the wooded hills of his native county of Yorkshire and the fields and trees of France's Normandy region. He became one of the UK's most treasured artists, his works selling for record prices at auction. Historian Simon Schama said that "the popularity and durability of David Hockney's art, through all his shape-shifts and restlessly inventive experiments, are really no mystery." "His work is admired - loved is not too strong a word - by the millions who, worldwide, flock to see it because it presupposes an expectation of pleasure," Schama wrote in an essay accompanying a 2025 Hockney exhibition in ...

KPIT Technologies co-founder and chairman Ravi Pandit dies at 75

Ravi Pandit, co-founder and chairman of mobility technology firm KPIT Technologies and a noted industry leader, died here on Friday morning following a brief illness, the company said. He was 75. In a statement, the company said it was "deeply saddened" by the passing of its founder and chairman of the board on May 8. A gold-medallist Chartered Accountant and alumnus of the Sloan School of Management at MIT, USA, Pandit had also chaired Kirtane & Pandit Chartered Accountants (KPCA), a professional services firm, it said. Over a career spanning more than three decades, Pandit played a key role in advancing technology-led mobility solutions and sustainability initiatives in India and abroad, it said. Beyond business, he was associated with several civic, educational and policy institutions. He co-founded organisations such as Pune International Centre and Janwani, supported the Centre for Sustainable Development at the Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics, and served as ...

Ted Turner, CNN pioneer who reshaped 24-hour news, dies at 87

Ted Turner, the maverick founder of CNN who transformed global news and built a vast cable empire, dies at 87 after a long illness