SCARY ORDEAL
Nineties music star cancels gigs after ‘collapsing in a pool of blood’ and being rushed to hospital for urgent surgery
The star has worked with the likes of Ellie Goulding and Paul McCartney
NINETIES music star Nitin Sawhney has cancelled his upcoming gigs after being rushed to hospital for urgent surgery.
The British musician, 59, shared a health update with his fans as he revealed that he had suffered a heart attack.
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Nitin, who is the recipient of over 20 international awards, a CBE, and an Ivor Novello Lifetime Achievement Award, said he blacked out and woke up in a "pool of blood" after smashing his face against a glass table.
He took to his X platform on Wednesday and wrote: "After much reflection, I’ve decided to explain myself regarding the post below… A few days ago, out of nowhere, I had a heart attack.
"Nuts…I was rushed to hospital and the NHS put a stent in one of the arteries leading to my heart, after which I was kept in to await a similar operation (which I was referring to in my quoted post) on another artery."
The producer and composer said he has undergone two emergency surgeries and will need a third in the coming weeks.
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"Both ops have gone well and the NHS were fantastic," he continued.
"I will need a third, bigger operation next month, but one day at a time I reckon…I weight train 3-4 times a week, regularly kick-box, eat healthily and had no history of heart disease.
"When I spoke to the doctor, he said it was probably a genetic predisposition.
"Basically, as a British Asian I have a significantly higher likelihood of cardiovascular disease or heart attacks.
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"My dad had a triple heart bypass, my mum has had two attacks and three of my uncles had heart attacks with one dying on the spot."
Nitin then detailed the terrifying incident that left him needing treatment from a plastic surgeon after sustaining injuries to his face.
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He said: "It’s a terrifying feeling. Your chest feels like someone is sitting on your chest holding a 200kg weight and your head feels like it’s spinning out of control as you struggle to remain conscious.
"In my case, I completely blacked out, falling onto a glass ornament from a standing position, smashing the coffee table with my face as I collapsed into a pool of blood and broken shards, penetrating both cheeks, my nose and the area just beneath my eyes.
"Later a plastic surgeon had to carefully remove pieces of glass from my face with tweezers after four injections to my face."
Nitin said he would be cancelling his gig in Australia's WOMADelaide tour this month and rescheduling it for next year.
But the star said he would be returning for his UK Identity Tour in April, as he visits Glasgow, Birmingham, Brighton and London.
He added: "I’m ok… and (quick plug) we’ll still be touring the UK in April (Glasgow, Birmingham, Brighton and London between the 7-11 Obviously we had to defer playing WOMADelaide until next year.
"We also have to defer my performance with The Hallé on May 4th to later in the year as that will be soon after my third heart operation.
"On a positive, I’m also proud to say I (plug 2) produced three tracks on the current U.K. number one album of Rod Stewart and Jools Holland. Ok. Self promotion over."
On a serious note, Nitin urged people to seek medical advice if they were worried about their heart.
He went on: "The point is there has been an alarming rise in fatalities from heart disease recently.. particularly amongst British Asians. So… if you are Asian or, to be honest, in any vulnerable group… get your heart health checked out. It could save your life. You might not see something like this coming… I didn’t."
The musician has recorded multiple albums, film soundtracks and compilations, encompassing over 70 film and TV scores.
He is also "established as a world-class producer, songwriter, touring artist, BBC Radio and club DJ, multi-instrumentalist, theatrical, dance, videogame and orchestral composer and cultural/political commentator".
Nitin has collaborated and written for the likes of Paul McCartney, Sting, Ellie Goulding, Shakira, Joss Stone and Pink Floyd among many others.
He has received over 20 major national and international awards and is a member of Oscars, BAFTA and Grammys.
His music for Channel 4's Second Generation received a nomination for the Ivor Novello Award for Film and TV Composition.
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He also composed a new symphony to accompany Franz Osten's 1929 silent film, A Throw of Dice.
Some of his other works include scores for Oscar-nominated director Mira Nair's adaptation of Jhumpa Lahiri's, The Namesake and Human Planet for the BBC.
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