Photo credit: Ankit Desai (Shabdopadesh) and CocktailZindagi

Gandhinagar: Veteran journalist, author and columnist Kanti Bhatt passed away today in Mumbai. He was 88. He is survived by his wife Shila Bhatt, a Delhi based senior journalist.

Kanti Bhatt joined journalism in 1966 in Bombay. He served as sub-editor of Vyapar in 1967. He later served with several Gujarati publications like Chitralekha, Mumbai Samachar, Janshakti, Sandesh, Yuva Darshan, Jansatta. He worked in Kenya for some time in 1977. He was associated with investigative journalism. He penned down daily columns titled Aaspaas and Chetnani Kshane in Divya Bhaskar. He had written short stories. His over 400 books on varieties of topics are published covering range of subjects such as health, self-help and more.

Kantibhai was best known for his journalism in Abhiyan Gujarati magazine which he had to sell later to a media group. One highlighting point of his journalism career was interview of Dawood Ibrahim.

Kanti Bhatt was born on 15 July 1931 in Sachra village in Bhavnagar State to Hargovindbhai and Premkunwar. His family belonged to Zanzmer. He had four brothers and three sisters. He was an editor of Zankar magazine of highschool in Mahuva. He completed Bachelor of Commerce from Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda in 1952. He worked with Bhavnagar municipality for sometime. Following illness, he moved to naturopathy Ashram at Uruli Kanchan. He worked with his uncle in Penang, Malayasia for nine years when he travelled between India and Malayasia by sea seven times.

Kanti Bhatt married Ranjan in 1960s and divorced in 1977. He married Sheela Bhatt, a journalist, in 1979. He had a daughter, Shakti who died in 2007.

Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi in his tweets paid tribute to late journalist.

જેમની કોલમ સવારને માહિતીસભર કરી દે એવા કટારલેખક અને પત્રકાર શ્રી કાંતિ ભટ્ટના નિધનથી વાચક જગતને મોટી ખોટ પડી છે. એમણે જે વિપુલ પ્રમાણમાં લેખન કર્યું છે એનાથી વર્તમાન પત્રકારિતા અને વાંચતું ગુજરાત સમૃધ્ધ બન્યું છે.

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 4, 2019

ઘેરા દુઃખની લાગણી સાથે સદગતના આત્માની શાંતિ માટે અંતરમનથી પ્રાર્થના તથા શોકગ્રસ્ત પરિવાર અને એમના વાચકવર્ગને સાંત્વના.

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 4, 2019

DeshGujarat