Lyricist and music director John P Varkey passes away

THRISSUR: Lyricist and music director John P. Varkey, 52, has passed away. He has composed music for many Malayalam films such as Neythukaran, Kammatipadam, Olipporu, Unnam, Eeda, Penkodi and many Telugu and Kannada films. He had collapsed at his home at around 5 pm on Monday.

John, who rose to prominence in the music scene with an album of Jigsaw Puzzle, was a member of the band 'Avial'. Jigsaw Puzzle was the first Malayali band to reach MTV channel. He later became a member of the band Slow Pedals.