02/06/2026
Kaustuv Banerjee
November 5th 1993 - May 20th 2026
We are deeply saddened to announce the sudden loss of our beloved Kaustuv Banerjee.
Son, musician, teacher, friend, lover, talented, focused, reliable, quirky, so many fitting adjectives, it is impossible to describe him briefly.
Kaustav suffered a brain attack on May 17th, it was sudden and terminal, he passed away on May 20th at Manipal Hospital in Dakhuria, his body cremated later that afternoon in the presence of stunned family and friends.
Kaustuv was a bright and creative young man; his love for music, animals and nature was visible to everyone who knew him personally. Trekking and making music were among his many passions, teaching guitar whether to students in classes, one on one or online was at the center of his daily activities for several years. He was disciplined with his work, methodical, competent and reliable; he often and successfully managed multiple gigs giving apt meaning to the term ‘hustle economy’.
In 2019 he joined Responsible Charity as a music teacher to our SlumJam program, from there he embedded himself into the hearts and minds of everyone in the organization, quickly proving himself capable of handling different tasks across departments. When the organization launched Kolkata Live Music, a free platform showcasing artist and venues for live music in the city, it was Kaustuv who ran the logistics almost exclusively, he later joined the visual team for the charity’s social media channels and still managed to find time to teach music to children from underprivileged backgrounds, as well as providing private guitar lessons for individuals of all ages; not to mention being the front man of the popular blues and rock & roll band: Plump Jacket.
Kaustuv left us too soon, all of us are still in shock, his co-workers, students, friends, fans, family and loved ones. It’s an incomprehensible and senseless loss. He is survived by his beloved parents Tridib and Tapati Banerjee and his girlfriend Anjana Sanyal, who together with the rest of us who knew and loved him continue to miss him in deep grief.
May he be at peace wherever his atoms ruminate in our universe, farewell to our resident rockstar.
