Dec 25, 2025
Woke up as usual, early in the morning at 6AM local time. It was Friday, Sep 19th and typically a work-from-home day for me. My workload on Friday usually was light. After completing all the scheduled morning engagements, at around mid day I was surfing the net. Suddenly my browser flashed the message that noted Assamese singer Zubeen Garg had passed away in Singapore few hours back during a scuba diving accident. These days internet is full of fake news. So, not believing it, I started browsing more and soon came to realize that this indeed was true. I could not trust my eyes reading this news. It was beyond shocking. Didn’t know how to process this. Hours went by and was still in complete disbelieve. How could that happen? Only few days back he was performing in Mumbai during Dr. Bhupen Hazarika’s birth centenary celebration.
It was afternoon my time and then I called my brother in India in order to know more about it as to what actually had happened. He told me that Assam was in state of utter shock and people didn’t know what hit them. He said whole of Assam had gone silent. People were silently out on the street with teary eyes. It was as if every family in the state had lost someone in their own family. The news was that his body is being transported to Assam and people are waiting to see him one last time. I could only imagine what he described. I spoke to him for few minutes and then disconnected.
For the rest of the day I could not focus or concentrate on anything. I started browsing for all possible news and the truth about it. As I continued reading more and more about the happening, I became emotional. Could not control and my eyes were wet. I asked myself why was I so emotional for someone whom I didn’t even know personally other than listening to his songs. I listened to many other singers from all over the world and some of whom we had lost in the recent past. I was sad but never emotional for any of them. So, why was this emotion?
As for myself, I’m currently living in USA. I moved here way back in 1995 after my engineering graduation and couple of years of job in India. I had never met Zubeen personally and had never been to any of his live performances. I came very close to hosting him here in USA, as part of Assamese organization’s yearly celebration of community event in 2006. Due to some unexpected circumstances, we could not manage his Visa and as such he could not visit. So, a personal meeting never materialized. Coming from Assam, like many others, I am a music lover and I listen to all kinds of songs in different languages and cultures from all over the world. Like most of the Assamese from my generation, two of my favorite singers are Bhupen Hazarika and Zubeen Garg. I always listened to Zubeen’s songs for his outstanding lyrics and incomparable voice. Lyrics of his songs are thought provoking, deep and like paintings.
I was born and brought up in Assam and so, we are from the same homeland. But our common thread begins and ends there. After my higher secondary, I left Assam in 1986 for my higher education for four years. I came back for a year in 1990 and then left again in 1992 before leaving India permanently in 1995. Zubeen appeared in the scene in 1992 through his overnight mega hit of Anamika and by then I already had left Assam. Growing up, I was a hardcore fan of Bhupen Hazarika, Rabha and Jyoti Sangeet and Borgeet. And Bihu was always the bloodline. That is what I carried with me when I left Assam. One thing about us, the Assamese, is that we are always closely tied to our culture. Being away in a distant foreign land, we remained tied to Assam celebrating our cultures, functions and music. And in that sense, as Zubeen was slowly becoming one of the prominent ambassador of Assamese culture, we started listening to his songs as well. Then the more I listened to his songs, the more I fell in love with his songs, the lyrics, melodies and the message it brought. His Bihu songs were very popular among us which we choreographed and performed here in USA to the best of our abilities.
Listening to his songs and occasional reading about his work for the community back in Assam was something usual for me, nothing out of the ordinary. But then, once we lost him, why was I feeling this unexplainable sorrow and a sense of emptiness as if I too had lost someone dear to my heart. That was in fact the case. How did this happen? I started doing a soul searching. I started thinking deeper as to what could be possible reason for this.
Soon I realized that even though I was listening to his songs, in reality, through his songs, I was following the story of my own. After three decades of following Zubeen’s songs and his philanthropic works, now when I look deep, I could feel that through his songs, he was telling my own stories, stories of thousand others like me. He was showing the path out of struggle, he provided hope to thousands who were in the similar situation like I was. Unknowingly I hoped and wished had there been someone like him during my time in Assam. And in the process, unknowingly and without realizing it, an unseen bond war forged.
Growing up as a village kid in a poor family, often I would listen to “Xitore Xemeka Rati” by Bhupen Hazarika and relate to every line in that song. It used to give me immense happiness knowing that someone out there understands what someone like me or a family like us goes through on a daily basis. Listening to that song I would quietly go to bed with a hope for a better tomorrow. During my adult life, here in USA, when I listened to “Pakhi Pakhi Ei Mon” by Zubeen it brought me similar vibes. It carried me back decades to my childhood. It drew the picture so perfectly for a kid trying to do his/her daily routine. It reminded me how every evening I would be studying with a tired mind. How would my mother comfort me and father would provide the sense of strict discipline. And just like that, without knowing, the imaginary bond continued to grow.
I grew up and lived through, arguably, the darkest time of Modern Assam, from 1979 to 1992. First it was the Assam agitation. Our daily life between 1979 and 1985 was study, taking part in agitation, demonstration against the administration demanding expulsion of illegal Bangladeshis and staying ready to do whatever it takes to get to our goals. Our sense of regionalism was not up for compromise at any cost. As a result, we faced full scale wrath and atrocities from the administration, Indian Army and paid a heavy price. Then came ULFA. Life was not guaranteed on a daily basis. We were caught between two ideologies. We could not escape. It was depression all around. For me though, my higher studies took me to outside Assam in 1986 and personally escaped some part of that horrible period. Then I was back in Assam again in 1990 for couple years. Between 1992 and 1995, I was mostly out of India due to my job. I visited Assam only one or two times during that period. During the time of Assam Agitation, Rabha and Jyoti Sangeet carried our emotion. We literally became the Phiringoti (sparks) from the bank of Luit (Brahmaputra). When I left Assam physically, my heart and mind stayed back. I would be calling home every now and then and get the update as to what was happening. Those were the days before internet and only communication medium was long distance phone call. My parents would update me how slowly things are turning for better and everybody once again was hopeful. Would learn how Bihu and Puja celebrations were slowly returning to normal and how someone named Zubeen was becoming a craze for the new generations of Assam. I personally missed the time when Zubeen came to the life of People of Assam, bringing sense of hope and love through his music. I could not feel that from a distant land due to the fact that those were the days before internet. Once internet was mainstream, I became more knowledgeable about the phenomenon called Zubeen. I could see why that craze was. Unconditional love for his people, effort to bring Assamese culture to the forefront and lead a whole generation of young kids to a bright future, I also could see from far the person my parents tried to explain. And then when CAA was imposed, once again Assam started burning. I saw Zubin’s activism from a distant land. It evoked the memories of the dark time I lived through. I did not have to meet this person to appreciate what he was leading on behalf of People of Assam. An old story was being rewritten. I felt. Then a similar betrayal followed from the people in power. History repeated itself but not before making that intangible bond even stronger.
Zubeen was a larger than life celebrity but for the people around him he was one of them. Nobody saw an untouchable celebrity in him, rather saw one of their own. When I read about his work for flood victims, saw his pictures of fund raising. it took me back to my school days when flood would hit us every year. We lived through it as a regular yearly event. There was no government help, no NGO work, no fund raising. It was business as usual. But seeing Zubeen’s work with his followers made me dream, what if there would have been a Zubeen like during those days. This was a dream which did not make any sense but made the imaginary bond almost a reality.
Personally, when life took an unexpected turn and it became tough to get going, listening to his songs like “More Kothai Amoni Korene” gave me a sense of retrospection. It made me realize that I was not alone to suffer like this. It helped me move past difficult time. Then I listened to “Hothate Heral Kenino” and I tried to console myself. Zubeen’s lyrics are like paintings. It draws perfect picture. When I listened to “Runjun Nupure Mate” I could feel the canvas of beautiful Spring in Assam which inspires a romantic feeling. His lyrics of “Silaa Silaa Silaa Moi” and beautiful rendition of it in his voice, in my opinion, is a master piece which described the ambition of a free mind that tries to find its love at any cost. It reminded me, in a similar way, how I would be dreaming as a poor village kid to be free and travel to distant dream land following my ambition of seeing the unseen, meeting the unknown. And there are many more like these.
In Zubeen, I could sense two personalities. In his music, I saw a creative genius gifted with an extraordinary talent. Then in his public life, I saw a common down-to-earth person who dedicated himself for the welfare of his people at any cost. His self belief and confidence struck a cord which told me that if you have the skill and good intent, anything is possible. And that was a match.
We, the Assamese people, are an emotional bunch. We carry our emotion, rightfully so, in our sleeves when it comes to preserving our culture. For that matter, this is also true for all my fellow North Easterners. We live for our culture and can die for it. Zubeen was the fearless torch bearer of Greater Assamese culture. He was hell bent on promoting Assamese culture to the outside world through his unparalleled and gifted musical skill and that resonated with everyone in Assam or with root in Assam irrespective of age, gender and religion. He understood and utilized his power to the full extent possible for the welfare of Assamese society with a selfless dedication and fearless attitude. This is where he created this strange bond with people like us, thousands of us without the need to meet and know each other personally.
So, my realization now is that it is not necessary to meet or know someone personally in order to create an unshaken bond. But this is not usual, in fact rare. Zubeen was a rare gift to Assamese society where countless people were blessed by his selfless act and unconditional love. But what is unusual is that his work created an invisible bond full of love and respect with thousands of us whom he never met, never knew. And when that emotional bond died a premature death, teary eyes were natural. This is unprecedented and we are blessed to live in the same time as Zubeen’s . Rest in peace, Zubeen.
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