Bodybuilder Dies at 42 After Going into Cardiac Arrest During Surgery: Reports

NEED TO KNOW

• Bodybuilder Varinder Singh Ghuman died at age 42 after going into cardiac arrest, according to reports

• Ghuman had reportedly been undergoing shoulder surgery at Fortis Hospital in Amritsar, India prior to his death

• The famed bodybuilder was remembered as “a devoted vegetarian” who “built his body with discipline and grace”

A popular Indian bodybuilder has died after he suffered a heart attack, according to reports.

Varinder Singh Ghuman died at age 42, according to Indian newspaper The Tribune, which reported that he had been receiving treatment at Fortis Hospital in Amritsar at the time of his death. Fellow bodybuilder Harminder Dullowal told the outlet that Ghuman had been hospitalized after he ruptured a muscle in his chest.

A doctor from the hospital told The Tribune that Ghuman went into cardiac arrest while undergoing shoulder surgery.

A rep for the hospital did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

“We had never expected that he would meet this fate. It is very difficult to accept this loss,” Ghuman told The Tribune.

News agencies IANS and the Press Trust of India reported that Ghuman’s manager said he was suffering shoulder pain before he was admitted to the hospital and died on Thursday, Oct. 9. Both reported that the bodybuilder’s nephew also confirmed the news of his death to reporters.

The Press Trust of India later reported that Ghuman was cremated in Jalandhar on Friday, Oct. 10, where politicians and artists were among those gathered to mourn his death.

Tributes poured in online for the bodybuilder after his death, including a message from Senior Congress leader Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, who wrote on X, “Hearing the news of the sudden demise of Punjab’s famous bodybuilder and actor Virender Singh Ghuman ji has left my heart very saddened,” according to an English translation.

He added, “With his hard work, discipline, and ability, he illuminated Punjab’s name across the world. May Waheguru ji grant his soul eternal abode at His feet and give strength to the family to bear this sorrowful blow…🙏.”

Indian National Congress member Pargat Singh also paid tribute to Ghuman on X, where he shared, “It’s deeply painful to learn that famed body-builder and actor Varinder Singh Ghuman Ji passed away from a heart attack.”

Singh continued, “He was a devoted vegetarian, built his body with discipline and grace. May Waheguru grant his departed soul eternal peace and give strength to his family to bear this loss. 🙏”

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Ghuman’s bodybuilding career spanned multiple years, and he competed in numerous competitions, including Mr. India, which he won in 2009, and Mr. Asia, where he placed second. According to The Tribune, Ghuman also previously competed in Arnold Schwarzenegger‘s Arnold Classic bodybuilding competition.

He also appeared in multiple films. Ghuman began his acting career in 2012 when he appeared in Kabaddi Once Again, and went on to act in Marjaavaan in 2019 and Tiger 3 in 2023.

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