Popular folk singer Gaddar died in Hyderabad on Sunday from ill health. He was 77.
Gaddar's real name was Gummadi Vittal Rao. At one point, he was an icon among Naxalites and has been known for his work on human rights.
In his book Hello Bastar: The Untold Story Of India's Maoist Movement, Rahul Pandita called Gaddar "legendary balladeer".
"Maoists ideologues like the legendary balladeer Gaddar would travel from one village to another, talking about hunger, deprivation, marginalisation, caste bias, and sing songs on 'martyrs' like Peddi Shankar," writes Pandita in the book about Gaddar.
The Deccan Chronicle tweeted that Gaddar became a household name in the region during the Telangana Statehood Movement.
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Gaddar died at Appolo Spectra Hospital, Hyderabad from lung and urinary problems and old age, reported PTI, adding that he was suffering from severe heart disease and was admitted to the hospital on July 20.
Gaddar underwent a bypass surgery on Thursday and recovered from it, said the hospital said in a statement.
"However, he has a history of lung and urinary problems, which along with advanced age aggravated and led to his passing," PTI further quoted the hospital as saying
