Just when there were doubts about the exact reason for the veteran filmmaker’s death, with controversy on whether he died of dengue, multiple organ failure or cardiac arrest, the hospital announced the cause of Yash Chopra’s demise yesterday
Yash Chopra breathed his last on 21 October. His sudden death came as a shock to the Indian film industry aka Bollywood. Though doctors believed that Chopra died of dengue, no confirmation about the exact cause of his death was declared – as there were doubts lingering whether the king of romance suffered a cardiac arrest or multiple-organ failure. But yesterday the Lilavati hospital authority clarified that Chopra actually passed away due to sepsis with pneumonia resulting in multiple-organ failure, all due to an immune system weakened by dengue.
“Chopra developed secondary infections after dengue, which soon developed into sepsis. He had fever, headache, and breathlessness for three days before being admitted to the hospital. He was taking treatment, but he didn’t respond well to it. He died during a very short span of illness, which can be only attributed to his old age,” said a state health official.
The report from Lilavati hospital, where the filmmaker was admitted, also stated that Chopra’s condition deteriorated from the third day. “He was old, and dengue worsened it. He was taking medicines for dengue from the OPD,” said a doctor from Lilavati.
The BMC on 23 October ascertained that it would comment only after the death committee confirmed the actual reason of death. However, civic officials categorically denied that they have received any communiqué in this regard. “We have not received any report as yet. We are expecting it in a couple of days,” additional municipal commissioner Manisha Mhaiskar said in his statement.
The Bombay Municipal Corporation, which received much flak from the media for being inefficient at taking appropriate measures to stop the spread of mosquitoes in the city, refused to admit that dengue was the cause of Chopra’s death. But now, if we go by the reports from the hospital, it is a fact.
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