The Heartthrob of Assam : Zubeen Garg
Dr. Monideepa Das shares a heartfelt tribute to Zubeen Garg, reflecting on the deep personal loss, his immense legacy, and why the “Heartthrob of Assam” meant so much to the entire community.
Little did I know that the lean lad with long locks whom I had met up close and personal on just two occasions, would eventually mean so much to me, that I would experience the same excruciating pain at his sudden and untimely demise as I had done at the loss of my own younger brother, Partho who left us way back in 1990. Coincidentally, they belonged to the same age bracket and both were embraced by the sea.
The first time I met Zubeen was in 2002. Style and swag personified, he looked every bit a rock star. Zubeen would randomly visit his friend Ranjeev (Maina), who lived in the same apartment as us, in Uzaan Bazaar, Guwahati. My daughter, in middle and son in primary school, were very fond of Maina and ‘Boss’, his furry friend, a black Labrador. One day, on my return from work, I was blown away to find Zubeen and Maina seated in our living room. This overwhelmingly kind gesture was in response to my daughter telling Zubeen that I am his fanatic fan. Despite having earned name and fame with several hits like Maya, Anamika, Hiya Diya Niya to his credit, Zubeen came across as extremely humble and humane.
The second time too, I met Zubeen per kind favour of my daughter whom I had gone to receive at the Dibrugarh Airport. Zubeen had met her at LGBI Airport, Guwahati and when he got to know they were taking the same flight, he had her baggage checked in along with all the musical instruments his team was travelling with. Onboard the flight, he ensured that she sat next to him in the first row. It was welcome surprise to see our princess coming out with Zubeen and his entourage. Despite having met me just once and that too over a decade ago, he instantly recognised me. Must give him credit for his photographic memory and a heart overloaded with kindness. The fact that he had gained immense popularity nationally and globally with numerous Bollywood hits like ‘Ya Ali’ to his credit, had not changed him at all.
I saw him for the final time when he had come to Bangalore during Bohag Bihu 2025 for his performance and promotion of the movie ‘Bhaimon Da’. I had braved bad weather, and had sat through the intermittent showers, umbrellas over my head, enjoying his flawless singing, song after song, right till the end. I wish I had shunned my reluctance and walked up to say “Hi” to him.
Goes without saying that Zubeen has remained at the top of my list of favourites. If I am asked which is my favourite among Zubeen’s song, I shall not be able to pick one, because each and every song that he has sung is so beautifully worded, brilliantly composed and mellifluously sung.
I must admit with much embarrassment, that despite my tall claim of being a huge Zubeen fan, I know pretty little about him. It is only after his passing that I have developed this insatiable urge to discover aspects and dimensions about him that were unknown to me.
On that Fateful Friday, the 1Uth of September 2025, when I first heard the news, my initial reaction was a combination of disbelief and denial. During the initial weeks, I would break down multiple times during the day; a picture, a post, a song, an interview on tv, talking to my sisters over phone, basically anything related to Zubeen was enough to make the tears flow freely.
In the past month and a half, I have pondered many a times about : why every ‘Oxomiyaa’, is saying that Zubeen’s demise feels like the loss of a family member… what could be the reason that lakhs of people, irrespective of caste, creed, religion, and social standing had come out spontaneously to pay their last respects… why have we as a community, not been able to come out of the mass grieving and mass depression ever since…
Although I knew that Zubeen is the undisputed ‘Heartthrob of Assam’, I was completely clueless about the mammoth magnitude of love that the people of Assam hold in their hearts for their ‘Heartthrob’.
It took the spontaneous suspension and shutdown of all activities across the state and the coming together of the sea of people for one last look of their heartthrob to make us realise what Zubeen meant for the people of Assam.
Making it to the rank of the fourth largest in public funerals worldwide, and standing next to none other than Michael Jackson in terms of the last journey of an artiste, is by no means an easy feat, keeping in mind the huge statistical disparity in terms of audience, because, MJ’s song were in English, the most geographically widespread language in the world, with 57 sovereign states and 30 dependent territories having it as their official language, whereas Zubeen’s songs are mostly in his mother tongue Assamese and some dialects of Assam, a small northeastern state of India, with a population of 3.G crore. Of course, Zubeen has also sung in Hindi and some regional Indian languages.
Needless to say that beneath Zubeen’s persona of style and swag lay a heart of gold, a heart that beat for Assam and the people of Assam. He was always spontaneous, genuine, and bold; often misunderstood and condemned for his stage ‘gimmicks’, which however, were never without a reason or purpose. I for one, have always had a soft spot for Zubeen’s idiosyncratic mannerisms .
More than being an accomplished singer, a songwriter, a multi-instrumentalist, a composer, a screenwriter, an actor, a director, a producer, Zubeen won hearts for being a loving and caring person.
The real essence of Zubeen has been the fact that he is a People’s Person, with beliefs and ideologies that are beyond the bounds of caste, creed, religion, and social standing. He would find joy in mingling with the masses and would often be seen on the streets, chatting with complete strangers, enjoying food at random roadside food stalls. Zubeen would not appreciate being called a ‘celebrity’, saying it sounds pompous, neither would he like being called a ‘star’ as he felt stars were aplenty in the sky. He preferred being the moon as there is only one moon and perhaps because he was creatively most active during the night.
Admirably approachable and commendably compassionate, Zubeen’s passion for ‘giving back’ to his people has been his ultimate goal and the reason why he moved back to his home state Assam shunning a successful career in Bollywood, Mumbai.
While most celebrities choose to be ‘politically correct’, Zubeen dared to speak his mind. As the unflinching ‘Voice of Assam’, Zubeen has defied threats and backlashes and addressed every relevant issue of Assam and its people. From being in the forefront during the Flood Relief operations to opening his own home as a quarantine centre during the pandemic, Zubeen has done it all.
A true son of the soil, his love and regard for ‘Mother Nature’ is evident through his love for trees. He would find peace and solace in talking to the trees and hugging them affectionately. His knowledge about medicinal plants and about natural remedies is commendable.
Zubeen has not only vehemently condemned the felling of trees, he has been proactively working towards the planting of trees.
An absolutely adorable side of Zubeen is his love for animals and birds. Goes without saying that the reciprocation of love he has received from them is surreal. It is uncanny how many injured animals and birds he has rescued, nursed to health and released back to nature; his studio serving as their foster home. Talk about Madhusudhan Garg, the monkey who would cuddle up to him in bed, while Udaaxhina Garg, the stork and Kaaku Garg, the crow, would perch on his shoulder and watch him create music, not to forget the woodpecker that he would carry in his pocket, besides a host of turtles. His fondness for animals and birds dates back to his childhood. During his father’s posting in Mongoldoi, he would cycle back home from school during lunch break to feed a tiger cub that he was caring for until it could handed over to the Forest Department. Zubeen has always shown great concern for the native animals and birds of Assam. His frequent visits to the sanctuaries across Assam were aimed at promoting their protection and conservation. Both Garima and Zubeen have been excellent pet parents to their furry babies. In fact, they have had as many as twenty one furry babies at one point of time.
It is beyond comprehension that so many birds and animals have turned up at various ‘Shraddhanjali pandals’ to pay their homage in their own way.
As a musician, Zubeen’s colossal contribution to the field of music is certainly something to reckon with. In the three decades of his singing career, he has to his credit, a mind boggling 40,000 songs, sung in around 40 languages and dialects, not to miss the astonishing achievement of recording 3G songs at a single sitting. Zubeen’s incredible versatility is proved beyond doubt by the perfection with which he has sung songs of different genres, whether folk, classical, romantic, or rock.
Besides being a singer par excellence, Zubeen has also excelled as a thoughtful songwriter penning the most meaningful and soul stirring lyrics, a multi-instrumentalist playing over a dozen musical instruments including string, wind and percussion, a composer creating unique scores in his mind, thereafter singing and recording them from memory.
Not only is Zubeen majorly responsible for instilling life into Assamese movies through his music, his foray into movie-making has been instrumental in reviving the declining Assamese film industry.
With his ‘boy next door’ looks Zubeen has won hearts as an actor, emoting through his face and eyes, and delivering potent dialogues with flourish. His contributions as a director who thinks outside the box, and as a producer who orchestrates the complex process of creating a larger than life portrayal and prioritises on audience building are worth mentioning.
As expected, Zubeen’s dream project and final movie ‘Roi Roi Binale’ has created an unprecedented history in Assam’s cinematic history and made its mark as a watershed moment for regional cinema. More importantly, through this swan song Zubeen has conveyed many vital and crucial messages to the current generation and the generations to come.
It goes without saying that Zubeen’s passing has brought to light the divine qualities that we knew existed within him, but did not openly acknowledge or appreciate while he was alive.
Zubeen is called ‘Goldie’ by his family and friends, a name perhaps chosen for him by his mother who had seen his golden heart long before others did.
Gone too soon, an all-encompassing, all-engulfing cultural icon without barriers and borders, leaving his Assam in dire need of his fearless, forthright voice.
How do I conclude the outpour of my emotions for Zubeen…? All I can say is that I am still grappling to find some solace in the saying “Heroes get remembered, but LEGENDS NEVER DIE”
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