Veteran journalist Amita Malik dead

Veteran broadcaster and film critic Amita Malik died at a hospital in New Delhi on Friday after a prolonged illness.

Malik, 87, was suffering from leukaemia and was admitted to Kailash Hospital in south Delhi two weeks ago. She breathed her last this afternoon, friends and family said.

Born in Guwahati in 1921, she joined All India Radio as a casual staff in Lucknow and moved to Delhi as a permanent employee in 1946. In later years, she became an acclaimed film and media critic.

During her long career, Malik, known as the “first lady of Indian media”, had interviewed film luminaries like Satyajit Ray, Marlon Brando and David Niven.

Her comments on films and analysis have by and large been borne out of deep understanding and her analysis accurate.

She had married radio producer Iqbal Malik but they separated later. They have no children.

Her cremation will take place at Lodhi electric crematorium here tomorrow at 11.30 am.