'Pal' for Friends, 'Khuda Jaane' for Love, 'Tadap Tadap' for Break-up: For Every 90's Kid, KK Wasn't a Singer. He Was an Emotion

Distracted, shocked, unable to work? If demise of singer Krishnakumar Kunnath aka ‘KK’ left you teary and heartbroken, you’re the ‘90s-early 2000 kid’. And I completely empathise with you. For most of us KK wasn’t just an artist, he was an emotion.

“My childhood memory is ruined,” a friend texted on Wednesday morning. Another said, “School/college farewells won’t remain the same.” No matter where you are in life now, there’s no ‘90’s kid’ who hasn’t sought KK’s help to express his/her feelings.

We’ve sobbed and sang ‘Yaaron Dosti’ and ‘Pal’ with our friends during our farewell. ‘Zara Si Dil Mein De Jagah’ played on our minds while we tried to propose our crush.

We did blush and dance alone on ‘Mera Pehla Pehla Pyaar’ when our crush smiled at us. ‘Khuda Jaane Ki’ became our life’s theme when we experienced love for the first time.

We may have hidden our tears from our parents, but we found solace in ‘Sach Keh Raha Hai Deewana’ after our first heart break. Some over-romantic and a bit filmy lot even resorted to ‘Tadap Tadap Ke’ during those ‘tough days’. And ‘Chhod Aaye Hum Woh Galiyan’ supported our strong resolve to never indulge in love affair again.

Boiling in the same pot, our mutual emotions are overflowing. A post by a ‘90s kid’ on this day is reaching far off through social media.

“Every song (of KK) traces back to a certain memory. Every lyric imprinted into the brain like a muscle memory. So, tonight, play his songs and just hope that his voice somehow pieces our hearts back together,” said a post shared on Instagram multiple times.

Another recalled the tedious process of downloading songs from ‘songs.pk’ 10 years ago. The Instagram user said, “It seems too much effort. But we went that extra mile to add KK songs to our playlist.”

A Twitter user predicted a nostalgic future of a ‘90s kid’.

News18 spoke to a few fans, who had gathered at Kolkata’s Rabindra Sadan where the West Bengal government paid its last rites with a gun salute.

Tears welled up in her eyes, Minu Roy, a college student said, “I have come here to bid our hero goodbye. This was the first time that I saw him singing live and today he’s no more. I got the passes with such difficulty, after much pleading here and there. He performed so well. I still can’t believe he’s no more. I’m still shivering.”

Ratul Roy, another student told News18, “We wanted to take selfie yesterday (when he was performing at Nazrul Mancha in south Kolkata) but couldn’t due to massive crowd. I had never thought that his demise would be so sudden. He will always remain between us with his song ‘Pal’.”

While stunned fans stood there wiping their tears, and often hiding them from cameras, an inconsolable wife of KK pierced our hearts deeper. Chief minister Mamata Banerjee stood by his wife Jyothy Krishna, a shocked son and other family members.

When a fan was asked if she saw KK feeling uneasy during a concert on Tuesday night, she replied, “I left the show long ago as I was feeling suffocated. I felt sick there.” Another nodded in agreement and said, “It was too hot, not even sure if the air-conditioners were working. The windows had to be opened later.”

Cause of KK’s Death

There have been allegations that chaos and poor audience management at the Nazrul Mancha auditorium may have been responsible for KK feeling ‘unwell’. Reports said that while the auditorium has a capacity of nearly 2,500, over 5,000 people ended up for the event.

A video has also surfaced where a person spraying the contents of a fire extinguisher near a staircase where many KK fans, who were without a pass, had lined up.

News18 cannot independently verify the authenticity of the video but it seems to have gone viral on social media.

Dr Atanu Saha said, “KK has missed the golden hour, and that is the reason why he could not be saved. In case of a heart attack, a person needs to be rushed to a hospital within time. Only then he/she can be saved.”

The Kolkata Police has registered a case of unnatural death. The mortal remains of the 53-year-old singer will be flown to Mumbai, where he’ll be cremated in Versova on Thursday morning.

Politics Over KK’s Death

Politics has already begun over the singer’s sudden death, with the opposition BJP blaming the West Bengal administration for lapses and demanding an impartial probe. TMC state general secretary Kunal Ghosh snapped back and asked the saffron party to “stop its vulture politics”.

However, for a common man, politics on this day holds no value. It’s a day of flashback with either KK’s songs on loop or updates on news portals. As these also get lost in the background, a crucial question remains – Who’s responsible for KK’s death? Heat, mismanagement or lifestyle?

(Quotes by Kamalika Sengupta in Kolkata)

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