Hum Aapke Hain Koun and Maine Pyar Kiya music director, of Raam Laxman duo, dies of heart attack

Celebrated music composer for Bollywood and Marathi films Vijay Patil of the famed 'Raam Laxman' duo, passed away following a heart attack in Nagpur on Saturday, his family members said. He was 79.

According to media reports, Patil suffered a heart attack. His son Amar informed the media that his father had taken the second dose of Covid-19 vaccine recently.

As the Raam Laxman duo, Patil, along with his partner Surendra, had composed music for many top notch Hindi and Marathi films in the past over four decades.

They include blockbuster music for films like Maine Pyar Kiya, Hum Aapke Hain Koun, Hum Saath Saath Hain, Agent Vinod, Taraana, 100 Days, Hum Se Badhkar Kaun, among others.

Top Bollywood personalities, including Lata Mangeshkar have condoled the demise of Patil -- the 'Laxman' of the successful team of which 'Raam' (Surendra) passed away 45 years ago. Lata Mangeshkar tweeted, "Mujhe abhi pata chala ki bahut guni aur lokpriya sangeetkar Ram Laxman ji (Vijay Patil) ji ka swargwas hua. Ye sunke mujhe bahut dukh hua. Wo bahut acche insaan the.Maine unke kai gaane gaaye jo bahut lokpriya hue. Main unko vinamra shraddhanjali arpan karti hun."

Rajshri Productions also mourned the demise of Raam Laxman, "Music Composer Vijay Patil a.k.a Laxman of the iconic #RaamLaxman duo passed away. Our deepest condolences to his family in this tough time. Rajshri will always remember him for his immense contribution to the music industry. May his soul Rest In Peace."

Born as Vijay Patil, he was Laxman of the Raam Laxman duo. His partner Surendra, Raam of the duo, passed away in 1976 soon after they signed the film Agent Vinod. Vijay continued to use Raam’s name to honour his memory.

*Edited from an IANS report