The renowned Odia playback singer and top-grade artist of All India Radio and Doordarshan, Geeta Pattnaik, passed away on February 15, 2026, at a private hospital in Cuttack. She was 73.
Geeta Pattnaik, affectionately known for her melodious voice that captivated countless listeners through timeless classics like “Fura Kina Udigala Bani,” breathed her last on Sunday evening after a prolonged battle following a severe brain haemorrhage.
She fell seriously ill on Thursday (February 12, 2026) while attending a literary festival in Bhubaneswar as a guest. She suddenly became unwell and was initially rushed to Capital Hospital in Bhubaneswar around 1 a.m. Due to a massive brain stroke causing heavy bleeding, she was shifted to a private hospital in Cuttack, where she remained unconscious in the ICU since then.
Despite medical efforts, she succumbed to her condition. At the time of her passing, her husband, Engineer Kishore Gopal Batra, brother-in-law, former police officer Sarada Prasanna Patra, nephew Parag Pattnaik, and other close family members were by her bedside.
Just five months earlier, the death of her elder sister Indira—the wife of senior journalist Pradosh Pattnaik—had deeply affected her mentally, contributing to her emotional strain.
A postgraduate in Political Science, Geeta Pattnaik received classical music training from Guru Kshitish Chandra Maitri before becoming a disciple of Sangeet Sudhakar Balkrushna Das and Guru Rakhala Chandra Mohanty at Cuttack’s Kala Bikash Kendra.
She lent her voice to playback singing in around 15 Odia films, earning acclaim as a leading playback singer. She received the State Government’s Best Playback Singer award for her contributions to Odia cinema.
Her demise has left a profound void in Odisha’s music and cultural landscape, with numerous prominent personalities expressing grief and paying tributes to her enduring legacy.
