<p> Mehdi Hassan's death has left a void in the world of music that can never be filled, artistes said today as they mourned the loss of the Ghazal king.<br /><br />Melody queen Lata Mangeshkar, who once called Hassan the 'voice of God', said, "A singer like him is born once in a millennium. It is my bad luck that I could not sing with him when he was healthy. Now I can only regret. With his demise the music fraternity has lost a great and legendary singer."<br />Singer Talat Aziz, who trained under Hassan, said, "I feel a tremendous personal sense of loss. I was his 'shagird', I spent a lot of time with him. For me he was a star. I don't have words to describe his loss. He was a great asset to the world of Ghazal. Though he was not singing for quite sometime, but he will be missed. There will never be another Mehdi Hassan."<br /><br />"I remember him saying I can see 'sur'. We should celebrate him across India and Pakistan because he was an asset to both the countries. He was legendary. Such people come only once in a while," Pakistani Sufi singer Abida Parveen said.<br /><br />Another Pak singer Adnan Sami said, "He has been an inspiration to anyone who has anything to do with music. He created an institution called Mehdi Hassan... I am still absorbing the news. It's difficult to digest that he has passed away."<br /><br />Zila Khan said, "I am sad as I was when my father died. What aesthetics of music, what a great artiste he was. In his field of work he was a king because his choice of 'kalam', his music, was supreme."<br /><br />"It is a great loss. Everyone learnt from his music, technique and style of singing. I had the opportunity to meet him and he was always encouraging. He has been unwell since quite sometime," said singer Chitra Singh, wife of late Jagjit Singh. "It is a very sad news. I am shocked that he is no more with us. He was not only a great singer but also a very good human being. I remember in the '80s we did a concert at my place and it was a big hit. I was aware that he was unwell and I had always hoped that I should never get the sad news. But now that has happened, he will always remain alive in our hearts," said veteran musician Pyarelal.<br /><br />"It is a great loss. An era of Ghazal singing has come to an end. His Ghazals were not complicated and could be understood even by a layman. His singing was soulful and moving, his command over Urdu made his singing more endearing. He was the uncrowned king of Ghazal," Grammy winning musician Vishwa Mohan Bhatt told PTI.<br /><br />Several artistes took to Twitter to express their condolences.<br /><br />Actor Anupam Kher tweeted, "Very saddened to hear about my favourite Gazal Singer Mehdi Hassan's demise. As a student had gate crashed into Pak Embassy to listen to him. RIP."<br />Filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar posted, "Emperor of Ghazals no more. RIP Mehdi Hassan. You will be missed sorely!"<br /><br />Singer Shreya Ghoshal said, "Mehdi Hassan sa'ab is no more. The voice, who made many music lovers and lovers to find an expression of their heart's stories, is gone. RIP."<br /><br />"RIP Mehdi Hassan saab, huge loss to the world of music... your Voice is immortal though," tweeted Shankar Mahadevan.</p>
<p> Mehdi Hassan's death has left a void in the world of music that can never be filled, artistes said today as they mourned the loss of the Ghazal king.<br /><br />Melody queen Lata Mangeshkar, who once called Hassan the 'voice of God', said, "A singer like him is born once in a millennium. It is my bad luck that I could not sing with him when he was healthy. Now I can only regret. With his demise the music fraternity has lost a great and legendary singer."<br />Singer Talat Aziz, who trained under Hassan, said, "I feel a tremendous personal sense of loss. I was his 'shagird', I spent a lot of time with him. For me he was a star. I don't have words to describe his loss. He was a great asset to the world of Ghazal. Though he was not singing for quite sometime, but he will be missed. There will never be another Mehdi Hassan."<br /><br />"I remember him saying I can see 'sur'. We should celebrate him across India and Pakistan because he was an asset to both the countries. He was legendary. Such people come only once in a while," Pakistani Sufi singer Abida Parveen said.<br /><br />Another Pak singer Adnan Sami said, "He has been an inspiration to anyone who has anything to do with music. He created an institution called Mehdi Hassan... I am still absorbing the news. It's difficult to digest that he has passed away."<br /><br />Zila Khan said, "I am sad as I was when my father died. What aesthetics of music, what a great artiste he was. In his field of work he was a king because his choice of 'kalam', his music, was supreme."<br /><br />"It is a great loss. Everyone learnt from his music, technique and style of singing. I had the opportunity to meet him and he was always encouraging. He has been unwell since quite sometime," said singer Chitra Singh, wife of late Jagjit Singh. "It is a very sad news. I am shocked that he is no more with us. He was not only a great singer but also a very good human being. I remember in the '80s we did a concert at my place and it was a big hit. I was aware that he was unwell and I had always hoped that I should never get the sad news. But now that has happened, he will always remain alive in our hearts," said veteran musician Pyarelal.<br /><br />"It is a great loss. An era of Ghazal singing has come to an end. His Ghazals were not complicated and could be understood even by a layman. His singing was soulful and moving, his command over Urdu made his singing more endearing. He was the uncrowned king of Ghazal," Grammy winning musician Vishwa Mohan Bhatt told PTI.<br /><br />Several artistes took to Twitter to express their condolences.<br /><br />Actor Anupam Kher tweeted, "Very saddened to hear about my favourite Gazal Singer Mehdi Hassan's demise. As a student had gate crashed into Pak Embassy to listen to him. RIP."<br />Filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar posted, "Emperor of Ghazals no more. RIP Mehdi Hassan. You will be missed sorely!"<br /><br />Singer Shreya Ghoshal said, "Mehdi Hassan sa'ab is no more. The voice, who made many music lovers and lovers to find an expression of their heart's stories, is gone. RIP."<br /><br />"RIP Mehdi Hassan saab, huge loss to the world of music... your Voice is immortal though," tweeted Shankar Mahadevan.</p>