Hollywood star Elizabeth Taylor who died of heart failure aged 79 was in the public eye from the age of 11 and remained there even decades after her last hit movie. She managed to keep people fascinated by her incandescent beauty, courage and her open-natured character.

Al-Qaeda chief and terror mastermind Osama bin Laden who was killed at the age of 54 by US special forces at a compound near Abbottabad, a town about 50 miles north-east of Pakistan's capital Islamabad, was one of those rare figures whose actions (notably 9/11) changed the course of history.

The Indian actor, producer and film-maker Dev Anand, who has died aged 88, was the first and longest serving matinee idol of Bollywood cinema. The pinnacle of his career came with 'Guide' (1965), a film based on R.K. Narayan's novel.

M.F. Husain, who died in London at the age of 95, was a former billboard artist who rose to become India’s most famous painter before going into self-imposed exile after receiving death threats from religious hardliners for his nude images of Hindu icons.

Sai Baba, who died of heart failure aged 84, was the most influential and richest in India's long line of spiritual teachers claiming supernatural insight and powers. The foundation centred on his ashram in his native village Puttaparthi is devoted to charitable works and projects.

Leading a rock'n'roll life has proved fatal to many artists, but few could be considered as much of a loss to music as Amy Winehouse who was found dead at the age of 27, the cause not immediately clear. One of the outstanding singers of her generation, she suffered from drug addiction and the destruction it causes.

Salmaan Taseer was a popular figure in Pakistani politics and is known for his flamboyannce and boldness. He overcame poverty to make a fortune in business and had to undergo imprisonment before taking over as Punjab governor. He died at aged of 66 after one of his bodyguards shot him 27 times in an Islamabad.

In the first two decades of his rule Libya became the world's pariah as the flamboyant colonel used his country's oil wealth to support groups such as the IRA and the Palestine Liberation Organisation. Western enmity towards Libya reached a peak in 1988 when Pan Am Flight 103 exploded over Scotland killing 270 people. Muammar Abu Minyar al-Gaddafi was born into a Bedouin family on 7 June 1942 near the Libyan city of Sirte.

Steve Jobs (56) who died of pancreatic cancer, made an unprecedented impact on the world's electronics markets with a string of successful products like the iPod, iPhone and iPad tablet. In little more than a decade, he took Apple – the company he co-founded in 1976 and returned to in 1997 – from near-bankruptcy to being the second most valuable company by market capitalisation with $80 billion in the bank.

Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Dorjee Khandu (19 March 1955 – 30 April 2011) who died in a chopper crash near Sela Pass had a mass following in his home constituency Tawang. He is an affable person with a strong religious mooring. His untimely death in air mishap came as big shock to the Arunachal Congress and to its people who were expecting big ticket growth projects from him.

Mario (1926 – 11 December 2011) was an Indian cartoonist based Goa. He was honoured with Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri awards. He attained popularity with his works published in 'The Illustrated Weekly of India'.

Joshi (89) is an Indian vocalist in the Hindustani classical tradition. He was awarded Bharat Ratna in 2008. Joshi did first performed live in 1941 aged 19. His debut album was released by HMV in 1942. His performance at a concert in 1946 to celebrate his guru Sawai Gandharva's 60th birthday won him accolades both from the audience and his guru.

aka Tiger Pataudi (60) was a right-handed batsman and a right-arm medium pace bowler. He ws also former captain of the Indian team. He was the ninth Nawab of Pataudi until 1971, when India abolished royal entitlements. He made his first-class debut for Sussex in August 1957, aged 16. Tiger permanentl lost one eye in an accident. It was feared this would end his cricketing career, but Pataudi was soon in the nets learning to play with one eye.

Shammi (81) was a prominent film actor cum director. Shammi is hailed as one of the most entertaining lead actors that Hindi cinema has ever produced. He made his Bollywood debut in 1953 with the film Jeevan Jyoti. He received the Filmfare Best Actor Award in 1968 for his performance in Brahmachari and Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor for Vidhaata in 1982.

A prominent Ghazal singer, composer, music director, activist and entrepreneur. Known as 'The Ghazal King', he became famous in 1970's- 80's. Singh is credited for the revival and popularity of ghazal by composing them in a way that laid more emphasis on the meaning of words and melody evoked by them. Singh was the first Indian composer to use digital multi-track recording. He died at the age of 60.

aka Smokin' Joe (67) was an Olympic Heavyweight boxing champion, who ruled the boxing profession from 1965 to 1976. Joe became undisputed heavyweight champion in 1970, and followed up by defeating Muhammad Ali. Frazier made cameo appearances in several Hollywood movies, and two episodes of 'The Simpsons'. Frazier was diagnosed with liver cancer and died on November 7.

Roebuck (55) was an English cricketer who later renowned as a commentator. Roebuck captained the English county side Somerset between 1986 and 1988. His post-playing career as an erudite writer earned him great acclaim as a journalist with the Sunday Times and later as an author.Roebuck committed suicide after being asked by police to answer questions about an allegation of sexual assault.

A noted Assamese writer, a peace broker between the outlawed ULFA and New Delhi and a teacher — Indira Goswami (69) played many a varied role in a lifetime. She died of multiple organ failure at the Guwahati Medical College Hospital after prolonged illness. Known by her pen name, Mamoni Raisom Goswami, she had been a teacher at Delhi University.

One of the most important cultural figures of northeast India Bhupen Hazarika (85) used music, cinema and the written word to stitch political ideology and ancient traditions into the fabric of popular culture. His distinguished career as a film-maker, singer, lyricist and political activist spanned 70 years.