Here’s a list of eminent personalities from different walks of life who breathed their last this year
Steven P. Jobs, the Apple Inc. chairman and co-founder who pioneered the personal-computer industry and changed the way people think about technology, died on October 5, 2011 at the age of 56. Jobs' biggest contribution isn't just a smartphone, a tablet or an operating system, but Apple itself, a 12,000-strong organization that was once on the brink of irrelevance, Fortune said.
Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi (70), one of the greatest cricket captains India has produced, died in New Delhi after battling with a lung infection. Pataudi, regarded as one of the finest Indian captains, played 46 Tests for the country, scoring 2793 runs for an average of 34.91 with an unbeaten 203 being his highest score. In all, he smashed six centuries and 16 fifties in his career.
Sathya Sai Baba (23 November 1926 – 24 April 2011) Spiritual leader Sathya Sai Baba who has thousands of followers in India and abroad died of cardiac and respiratory failure after a prolonged illness. The news of his death plunged his followers, many of whom had thronged the town, into grief including master blaster Sachin Tendulkar.
Shammi Kapoor (21 October 1931 – 14 August 2011) Shammi Kapoor was an Indian film actor and director. He was a prominent lead actor in Hindi cinema from the late 1950s until the early 1970s. He was popular with the ladies, in his own inimitable way. His heroines remember him as someone who brought a joie de vivre to the sets. Someone who taught them that acting wasn't just about control, but about letting go too.
Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Dorjee Khandu, who was killed in a chopper crash on 30 April 2011. Khandu and four others - crew members Captain J S Babbar and Captain K S Malick, Khandu's security officer Yeshi Choddak and Yeshi Lamu, sister of Tawang legislator Tsewang Dhondup were killed in the chopper crash on April 30. The bodies were retrieved from the crash site at Lobothang near the 13,700 feet Se La in Tawang district on May 5 after six days of intense search operations.
Maqbool Fida Husain M.F. Husain, arguably India's most celebrated painter, died in London on 9 June 2011. He was 95, and had been unwell for some time. One of his most controversial paintings was the depiction of Mother India in the nude and was superimposed on a map of India. After a series of sustained protests by Hindu groups, he withdrew the painting from an exhibition, and later apologised.
Amy Winehouse The British singer was found dead at her London home on 23 July 2011. She was 27. She was known for her powerful deep contralto vocals and her eclectic mix of musical genres including R&B, soul and jazz.
Ace fashion photographer Gautam Rajadhyaksha passed away on July 13, 2011 following a massive heart attack. He was 61. Rajadhyaksha was very popular among film personalities and worked on portraits of almost all the leading stars of the Indian film industry.