Indus Creed founding guitarist Mahesh Tinaikar dies at 63 after a heart attack

Mahesh Tinaikar, the founding lead guitarist of the Indian rock band Indus Creed, has died after a heart attack. He was 63. Fellow guitarist Allan Ao confirmed the news.

Tinaikar was there from the start. The band was formed in 1984 as Rock Machine and later renamed itself Indus Creed. It became one of the leading names in the country's independent rock scene.

Singer and composer Vishal Dadlani wrote on Instagram, "I feel like I've been kicked hard in the chest." He said every rock and roller in India since the Rock Machine days owes Tinaikar a debt of gratitude, because he opened up a road nobody had thought possible. He also sent his condolences to the guitarist's family and to his bandmates, among them Uday Benegal, Mark Selwyn and Zubin Balaporia.

Farhan Akhtar posted a black and white photo of Tinaikar on stage to his Instagram story with a short note: "RIP brother #maheshtinaikar".

Musician Floyd Francisco Fernandes looked back on the Bombay years, when good guitar playing mostly reached young fans on tape. He remembered Tinaikar's black Ibanez and rainbow strap, and how he played with blazing intensity while looking completely calm. Many players from that era, he wrote, picked up the instrument only because they saw Tinaikar perform at Rang Bhavan year after year.