BP Singh No More: India Loses The Creator Of CID And Aahat

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For more than two decades, a fictional crime bureau in Mumbai gave Indian television one of its most dependable evening rituals. On Tuesday morning, 27 October, the man who built it, producer-director BP Singh, died after a massive heart attack.

Photo Credit: Instagram: @b.p.singhofficial

The BP Singh death was announced by filmmaker Ashoke Pandit, who paid tribute to his contribution to Indian television. His last rites will be held on 28 October, with further details expected from the family.

The Cameraman Who Became A Storyteller

Brijendra Pal Singh was born in Dehradun. He began his career at Doordarshan in 1973 as a news cameraman, and is an FTII alumnus (1970-73) who specialised in cinematography. The eye for a frame never left him.

CID began shooting in 1998 on Sony TV, following a team of detectives working for the Crime Investigation Department in Mumbai. Before it, he had directed the Marathi detective series Ek Shunya Shunya, in which Shivaji Satam played a cop, the actor who would go on to anchor CID as ACP Pradyuman.

A Show That Outlived Its Era

CID ran for two decades, from 1998 to 2018, and returned in 2024. In 2004, Singh made it to the Limca Book of Records for a single continuous shot of 111 minutes. Alongside it came the supernatural thriller Aahat, which earned him a loyal following of its own.

Viewers knew him on screen too. He played DCP Shamsher Singh Chitrole in CID, a familiar face across generations. He was later named president of the FTII Society and chairman of its governing council.

Frail In His Final Days

Days before his death, a video of Singh with members of the CID cast circulated on social media, drawing attention to his frail appearance. Dayanand Shetty, who plays Daya in the show, told media that Singh had not been keeping well for some time.

The reports do not detail his medical history, and no official medical statement has been cited. What is clear is how a heart attack can arrive in later life: sometimes with chest discomfort, breathlessness, cold sweats or pain spreading to the arm or jaw, and sometimes far more quietly.

BP Singh leaves behind a show that taught a generation to wait for a knock on the door and a clue in the final minutes. His death is a loss for Indian television, and a reminder that the people who entertain us for decades are as fragile as the rest of us. For families, it is also a prompt to treat an elderly relative's tiredness, breathlessness or sudden frailty as something worth a doctor's visit.