Ritu Nanda, an elder daughter of late Bollywood actor-filmmaker Raj Kapoor and sister to Rishi Kapoor, Randhir Kapoor and Rajiv Kapoor and married to industrialist Rajan Nanda, died on Tuesday at the age of 71 after battling with cancer for many years. Rajan Nanda passed away two years ago.
Prayer Meet was accompanied by an emotional rendition of the song, Jeena Yahaan Marna Yahaan.
Ritu Nanda and Rajan Nanda have a daughter, Nitasha, and a son, Nikhil, who married Amitabh Bachchan’s daughter Shweta in 1997. Ritu Nanda was the grandmother of Shweta and Nikhil’s children Navya Naveli and Agastya.
Amitabh Bachchan shared his emotional blog post “An ideal daughter, an ideal sister, an ideal wife, an ideal Mother, an ideal in-law, an ideal Mother-in-Law, and an ideal friend.. has left us for good in a distance we cannot cover.. for now..!!”
He continued: “The rites are over.. to ashes they have been reduced.. a crowded hall in the home filled with the close-knitted relatives and dear friends, embrace break down, hold hands, hold…and the silence of condolence gradually creeps in…polite conversation, of reminisce, of association, of happy times spent together, of the fight and struggle for the ailment for years.. and most of all the loneliness of them that are left behind.. the vacuum.. the emptiness.. the presence that filled up the entire home.. lost and gone…that empty favourite chair .. that corner of preference .. the unstinted care and concern for all when present, now suddenly not in existence.”
Amitabh Bachchan shared his feelings again on his blog as he returned from the ‘chautha’ of Ritu Nanda.
“Immersions in the sacred river waters… the ashes washed, flowing by in the flow of the currents… prayers .. a gentle rain .. a blessing they say .. and tomorrow the 4th day , the ‘chautha’ .. the prayer meet … and traditions continue .. there must be meaning and reason .. there must be religious sanctity .. there must be belief .. there must be following .. a learning passed on from generation to the next from the times of time .. accepted and honored in its purity and its relevance , through the ages,” the actor wrote in his blog.
