Year Ender 2025: In the year 2025, 3 Padma awarded personalities of Kashi passed away. These include yoga guru Baba Shivanand, social worker Bimla Poddar and classical singer Pt. Chhannulal Mishra. Pandit Mishra had also been a proponent of PM Modi.
Varanasi: The year 2026 is going to start in a few days. People will always remember this year of 2025 with bittersweet memories. This year in 2025, three great personalities of Kashi have said goodbye to the world. Who is awarded the Padma Award, the highest award of the Government of India. Social service, music art and yoga practice gave him world recognition. In this, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is also a fan of one person, who has also been his proponent in the Lok Sabha elections.
Who are these three great personalities?
Kashi, the city of religion and spirituality, is considered the city of scholars. Scholars associated with other fields including education, music, art, yoga and social service will be found. Among these scholars, three scholars, Yoga Guru Baba Shivanand, social worker Bimla Poddar and Shastri Sangeet pioneer Pandit Chhannulal Mishra left this world in the year 2025.
yoga guru baba shivananda
Yoga Guru Baba Shivanand has been honored with Padmashree by the Government of India at the age of 126. While receiving the Padmi award, Swami Shivanand sat on the ground and saluted the then President Ramnath Kovind. After which people praised his simplicity. Baba Shivanand contributed to yoga, sadhana and spiritual life. He died on 3 May 2025 in Varanasi. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other leaders paid tribute to his death. Despite many ups and downs in Swami Shivanand’s life since his birth, he did not give up.
The secret of Swami Shivanand’s survival for 128 years
Swami Shivananda was one of the oldest living persons in the world. Swami Shivanand’s diet and daily routine were limited. He wakes up every day at 3 o’clock in the morning. Doing yoga, pranayam. Eating food without oil, salt, sugar and boiled food was the secret of Swami Shivanand’s health. Swami Shivanand was honored with the Padma Shri award by the Government of India in 2022. He is the oldest person to receive this honour.
Birth of Shivananda
Swami Shivanand Maharaj was born on 8 August 1896 in Haritala village, Bahubal Upazila, Habiganj district of British India, present day Bangladesh. Due to poor conditions at home, the parents and elder sister Aarti used to survive by begging from door to door for some years. Came to Nabadwip in 1901 with the famous monk Swami Oskarananda. 1977 he took initiation in Vrindavan Ashram. After staying in Vrindavan for 2 years, he started living in Kashi in 1979. Lived in Kabirnagar Colony located in Durgakund. He breathed his last in Kashi on 3 May 2025. Whose last rites were performed at the famous Harishchandra Ghat of Kashi.
PM Modi was also saddened by the demise of Swami Shivanand.
After the demise of Swami Shivanand, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while paying tribute, wrote on X that his life dedicated to yoga and meditation will continue to inspire every generation of the country. He was awarded Padmashree for his service to society through yoga. Shivanand Baba’s journey to Shivlok is an irreparable loss for all of us Kashi residents and crores of people who take inspiration from him, I pay tribute in this hour of sorrow.
Bimla Poddar honored with Padma Shri award
Bimla Poddar, a well-known social worker from Varanasi and founder of the institute “Gyan Pravaha” was famous for the preservation and study of Indian culture. In view of his works, the Government of India honored him with Padma Shri. He died on 14 May 2025.
Birth of Willam Poddar
Bimla Poddar was born on 28 August 1936 in Varanasi, a social worker and philanthropist. He had established the Gyan Pravah salt cultural study center located at the ghat in front of Varanasi. Which maintained a heritage museum containing artefacts of ancient India. Vimal Poddar was married to the late Vimal Kumar Poddar, from a prosperous business family. The family are directors of several businesses. Which also includes Ambuja Cement. Vimal Poddar was awarded the Padma Shri, India’s fourth highest civilian award.
Classical singer Pandit Chhannulal Mishra
- Well-known classical singer Chhannulal Mishra was a representative artist of Kinara Gharana and Banaras Gharana. He gave global recognition to the tradition of Banarasi music and Thumri. He died on 2 October 2025 in Mirzapur and his last rites were performed in Varanasi. On whose death the music world, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath paid tribute.
- Chhannulal Mishra was born on 3 August 1936 in Hariharpur, Azamgarh district of Uttar Pradesh. Mishra’s grandfather Gudai Maharaj Shanta Prasad was a famous tabla player. Chandulal Mishra learned the nuances of music from his father Badri Prasad Mishra at the age of 6. Chhannu Lal Mishra was taught Khayal by his first guru Ustad Ghani Ali Sahab at the age of 9.
- Chhannu Lal Mishra learned music with his father Badri Prasad and was educated by Kirana Gharana maestro Ustad Abdul Ghani Khan. Chhannulal Mishra is known for Khayal, Thumri Bhajan Dadra Kajri and Chaiti.
- Chhannulal Mishra was honored with many honors, mainly Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in the year 2000, Padma Bhushan in 2010, Padma Vibhushan in 2020. Chhannulal Mishra was also a proponent of Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the Varanasi Lok Sabha elections.
What message did the PM give on his death?
Prime Minister Narendra Modi described Chhannulal Mishra as a patron of Indian art and culture and said that his demise is an irreparable loss to the music world. He also paid tribute by mentioning his personal association with Chhannulal Mishra and being the proposer in 2014.