"My Wife, My Best Friend": Alka Raghuvanshi's Husband Mourns Her Death; Social Media Pays Tributes

Alka Raghuvanshi tributes: Delhi's art and cultural society is mourning the loss of one of its most long-standing patrons. Distinguished artist, author and curator Alka Raghuvanshi passed away at her Hauz Khan home Wednesday, after a months-long battle with pneumonia.

"Sadly, Alka Raghuvanshi, my first wife, my best friend, left us today," her husband and journalist Manoj Raghuvanshi

Sadly, Alka Raghuvanshi, my first wife, my best friend, left us today.@GauriSh53942971 @Singh_kritisans @parasgaur4 @benaresi_lass @mayankjain100 @basantbhardwaj1 @kamleshnirmal21 @drgilada @DrSanjay47 @DrRPNishank @SudhanshuBJP @SudhanshuTrived @ShahnawazBJP @SherRawat10 pic.twitter.com/brHrwx8rtN

Sadly, Alka Raghuvanshi, my first wife, my best friend, left us today.@GauriSh53942971 @Singh_kritisans @parasgaur4 @benaresi_lass @mayankjain100 @basantbhardwaj1 @kamleshnirmal21 @drgilada @DrSanjay47 @DrRPNishank @SudhanshuBJP @SudhanshuTrived @ShahnawazBJP @SherRawat10 pic.twitter.com/brHrwx8rtN

— Manoj Raghuvanshi (@manojraghuvansh) May 26, 2021

Having written on arts and culture for over three decades, Raghuvanshi has several titles including A Moment in Time with Legends of Indian Arts and Pathfinders: Artistes of One World to her credit. Exhibitions and art shows by her in the national capital were common, and one would be hardpressed to find a person immersed in the city's culture a stranger to her name. 

Spending the better part of her life in her beloved city, Raghuvanshi trained in the arts at Goldsmiths College, London and Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), Oxford. Her artwork spanned surfaces beyond the canvas, spilling colour onto fabrics, handbags, sarees and other wearables.

Alka Raghuvanshi Tributes Look Back At Her Life As A Prolific Artist

Classical dancer and scholar Prathibha Prahlad, a close friend of Raghuvanshi, mourned her passing, saying, "My dearest friend #AlkaRaghuvanshi journalist, painter, saree designer, columnist, art critic & writer, art curator, author of many books just left for her heavenly abode. Heartbroken!" 

Journalist Sonal Kalra commemorated Raghuvanshi as a "knowledgable art writer, besides being a superb artist."

I’m speechless and numb at this. #Alkaraghuvanshi was not just a very close friend for decades but was the the most knowledgeable art writer, beside being a superb artist herself. What an unimaginable loss. 🙏🏻 https://t.co/zVG4Y40Hmh

— Sonal Kalra (@sonalkalra) May 26, 2021

"I remember visiting her art show in Hauz Khas village to discover that the fingers that write could also paint. Outspoken in a warm & sometimes snappy way, with a passion for colours. Rest well, Alka," journalist Madhavan Narayanan wrote.

Actor Rajesh Tailang, sharing a snap of a WhatsApp exchange between himself and Raghuvanshi, bade her farewell on Facebook writing in Hindi, "And Alka didi is gone... My wish to hug you now remains unfulfilled....Lots of hugs didi... You will be missed."

Image: Mojarto, YouTube