Hours after the untimely demise of singer Krishnakumar Kunnath, better known as KK, the Kolkata police on Wednesday registered a case of unnatural death at the New Market police station.
The 53-year-old singer died, reportedly of a heart attack, after performing at an event organized by Gurudas College at the Nazrul Mancha auditorium in South Kolkata.
KK had performed at the same venue the evening before and complained about the air conditioner not working properly in the auditorium, which was overcrowded. The next evening, which was extremely hot and humid, the artiste repeatedly spoke out about the air conditioning and asked that the blazing spotlights be switched off.
In videos that have surfaced on social media, the artiste can be seen sweating profusely during his act. However, despite his discomfort, he performed 20 numbers, taking occasional breaks before rushing out of the venue as he was feeling suffocated.
Speaking to Bengali news channel ABP Ananda, KK’s manager Hitesh Bhatt said that the singer was feeling unwell while being driven to the Oberoi Grand where he was putting up. “KK said that he was experiencing cramps in his limbs and also asked me to switch off the car AC,” said Bhatt.
After returning to the hotel, KK obliged fans with selfies and took pictures with them. After he entered his room, he collapsed on the sofa.
“I couldn't even lift him. I then alerted the hotel staff. He was rushed to a hospital where he was declared brought dead,” added Bhatt.
While fans and colleagues have been mourning the death of the singer, who built up a personal connection with an entire generation with his songs, several artistes have called out the 'callous attitude' of the organizers for overlooking the artiste’s visible unease during the performance.
Bengali singer Rupam Islam, who had recently performed at the same venue, told ABP Ananda that he had also experienced suffocation during his performance as the organizers had allowed the auditorium to fill up to twice its capacity.
Some social media posts have alleged that almost 7,000 people had gathered to attend KK's show at the auditorium, which is meant to accommodate 2,000.
KK’s body was taken from Calcutta Medical Research Institute to a state-run hospital for a post-mortem this morning. Later in the day, the West Bengal government accorded a gun salute to the singer at Rabindra Sadan in the presence of chief minister Mamata Banerjee.
The artiste's last rites will be performed in Mumbai.
#WATCH | West Bengal: Gun salute accorded to singer #KK at Rabindra Sadan in Kolkata. CM Mamata Banerjee and members of the family of KK are also present here.
— ANI (@ANI) June 1, 2022
KK passed away in Kolkata last night after a live performance here. pic.twitter.com/A4ZTkOSm79
Meanwhile, the news agency Press Trust of India revealed that the preliminary findings of the post-mortem report stated that the singer died because of myocardial infarction, the medical term for a heart attack.
A police officer was quoted by the agency as saying, "There was no foul play behind his death. Clinical examination also found that the singer was having prolonged cardiac issues."