Bollywood Grieves pop icon Michael Jackson’s death

Mumbai: While Hollywood is left devastated by the sudden death of Pop icon Michael Jackson, Bollywood too is grieving the demise of one of most sensational entertainers the world has ever seen. Known for his trademark groovy moves and signature fashion sense, Jackson influenced many tinsel towners and taught them a thing or two about how to go about the business of entertainment.

Saddened by the tragic death of the singer, Farah Khan told reporters, "I officially had no training in dance and whatever I learnt was by watching Michael Jackson’s videos, especially `Thriller` over and over again. I consider him as my ‘guru’. He was the real reason why I wanted to become a choreographer. What I am today is because I saw his video ‘Thriller’. It was at that moment that I wanted to take up dancing as a profession".

Talking of her dream meeting with the singer, Khan said, “I remember, I had gone for an award show to New York. We were at the same event. I asked the organisers if they could arrange a meeting between us, which they did. It was a surreal experience. I feel really sad today."

Macho actor Sanjay Dutt too expressed his grief. "I was really shocked on learning the news of his death. It’s really sad. I have never seen an artist with so much talent. I saw him at a show in New York and Bombay too. I was sitting in the VIP section but I was at a distance. He was a great performer and a super entertainer."

Members of the Hindi film industry spoke to reporters about the legend:

Film director Anurag Basu: This is actually the end of an era. Our whole generation has grown up listening to his songs. This news is actually very sad and shocking.

Singer Shankar Mahadevan: He made us think differently with his hit "Thriller". He was an institution of modern music, which had great mass appeal with musical excellence. "Heal the world" is my favourite song.

Sukhwinder Singh: It's a huge loss for the music industry. People remember him only as king of pop, but his grip on the music was too wide to be restricted to one genre.

Sunidhi Chauhan: He was the one and only. My favourite song of his was "I just cant stop loving you".

Palash Sen: I am a huge fan of Michael Jackson. The man gave modern pop its identity and gave all of us lessons in music... not to mention the uniqueness of his vocals and his unbelievable dancing moves. He truly was the god of pop. Maybe the only singer in history who everyone knows across the globe. Sad loss.

Dibakar Banerjee: I would like to remember him for his music and his two songs "Billie Jean" and "Thriller".

Akriti Kakkar: He was and will remain the king of the music, an icon to aspiring singers for the way he carved a niche for himself by fighting the odds and creating a new genre of music which we shall remember forever as Michael Jackson's music. His demise is a big loss.

Subhash Ghai: Michael Jackson was a symbol of fire, passion and energy of talent who changed the peopl'e thinking. Youth followed him worldwide including in India and even our film music and dances have been heavily influenced by him.

Madhur Bhandarkar: We have been listening to his songs since 1980s and 1990s. The kind of euphoria that he created that time was amazing. His death is a great loss. It is so unfortunate that just weeks before he was supposed to hit the stage for his shows, he passed away. But he will always remain the king of music.