Ustad Zakir Hussain, the cult figure of Hindustani music, breathed his last in the United States yesterday. His unexpected demise has cast a spell of gloom on the world of music. Every music lover, irrespective of his caste, creed or language is genuinely shocked and grieved by the sudden exit that the great performer has taken.
Over the last two months, he was cancelling his programme bookings citing health reasons. No organiser believed that the health issue could be so serious that they could be permanently deprived of Zakir Hussian’s majestic presence on the stage. The 73-year-old maestro earned the distinction of being addressed as the ‘Ustad’ at a very young age, thanks to his precocity and virtuosity.
Very few city dwellers know that Zakir Hussain was a Mahim Kapad Bazaar boy who grew up in the vicinity of Mahim and Shivaji Park area. He was formally educated at St. Michel’s school and joined St. Xavier’s College. The Indian Music Group of the college began organising music festivals in a big way in 1977. The ‘Jan Fest’ became the ‘in thing’ with the young hep crowd, thanks to the presence of ‘Zek’ as he was lovingly called. His ‘Padmashree’ was announced in the wee hours on the Republic Day when he was accompanying the great Pandit Ravi Shankar who was virtually his Godfather.
In Mahim lived musicians of the calibre of sitar wizard Abdul Halim Jaffer Khan, tabla maestro Nizamuddin, composer/mandolin maestro Sajjad Hussain, ghazal singer Taj Ahmed. The ‘sobat’ (company) of these great masters and the actual ‘talim’ of his father and guru Ustad Alla Rakha Khan moulded Zakir Hussain into a great performer. His first big appearance was at the famous Sawai Gandharva Festival held in Pune every year. It was hosted by Pandit Bhimsen Joshi to commemorate his master Sawai Gandharva. The tiny seven-year-old boy stunned the entire audience by his spellbinding performance. There was no stopping him after that moment. He performed solo tabla recitals at Ustad Amir Hussain Khan’s ‘barsee’ and earned the appreciation of hard boiled tabla aficionados.
It was Pandit Ravi Shankar who gave Zakir Hussain the real break on the international circuits. It was his sheer talent and terrific hard work which catapulted him to worldwide fame. He engaged in experimental duets and interactive programmes with world famous celebrity musicians and rose in stature by leaps and bounds. He was one of the most versatile tabla players, playing solo, and a brilliant accompanist to Ravi Shankar, Shiv Kumar Sharma, Hari Prasad Chaurasia and dance legend Birju Maharaj.
His performances as an unfailing artiste turned him into the most sought after Hindustani musician. His commercial clip used as a promotional by ‘Taj Tea’ was a super-duper hit and he became a household name. He was one of the bestbehaved celebrities. He treated his fellow musicians, well-known or unknown, with unfailing courtesy. He was a friendly comrade to fellow musicians as well as common music lovers, and a role model to countless and aspiring youngsters. He will be sorely missed on the concert platform for a long time to come. A real heartthrob is back in the wings forever.
The writer is a noted classical music critic
