Veteran singer Lata Mangeshkar tweeted to express grief at the demise of Bollywood legend Dilip Kumar on Wednesday. Tweeting in Hindi, Mangeshkar wrote: "Yusuf bhai aaj apne chhotisi behen ko chhodke chale gaye... Yusuf bhai kya gaye, ek yug ka ant ho gaya, mujhe kuch sujh nahi raha, main bohot dukhi hoon, nishabd hoon, kayee batein, kayee yadein humein deke chale gayen (Yusuf bhai is gone, leaving behind his younger sister. His demise marks the end of an era. I am heartbroken. He has left behind so many memories)."
Mangeshkar was known to tie Rakhi on Dilip Kumar's wrist every year. "Yusuf bhai pichhle kayee salon se bimar they, kisiko pehchaan nahi paate the, aise waqt Saira bhabhi ne sab chhodkar unki dinraat seva kee hai, unke liye doosra kuch jeevan nahi tha. Aisi aurat ko main pranam karti hoon aur Yusuf bhai ki aatma ko shanti miley yeh dua karti hoon
(Yusuf bhai had been keeping unwell since the past few years and was unable to recognise anyone. During this time Saira bhabhi devoted her life and her days and nights to look after him. My pranam to this lady and I'm pray that Yusuf bhai's soul rests in peace)," the playback legend added.
The veteran actor passed away in a Mumbai hospital aged 98 in the early hours of the day.
Actors, singers, filmmakers and others associated with the film industry, especially whose lives he had touched, took to social media to mourn his demise, recall their experiences of meeting him and working with him, and offered their condolences to the bereaved family and his wife, veteran actress Saira Banu.
-With IANS inputs