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Late tabla maestro Ustad Zakir Hussain’s sudden death on December 15, 2024, shocked the world. His family, including brothers Fazal and Taufiq Qureshi, still haven’t come to terms with the fact that their elder brother, who was like a “chhatt (roof)” to them, is gone. Ahead of the iconic barsi concert, titled The Perfect Taal, which marks their father, late tabla maestro Ustad Allarakha Qureshi’s 25th death anniversary, the brothers share how life is without their Zakir bhai around.
They add that the barsi concert, which will be held in Mumbai on February 3, was his ‘last wish’. It’s been over a month without your brother. How has life been? Fazal – Zakir bhai’s passing came as a shocker.
It’s not sunk in yet. We still can’t talk about him in past sense. It has made us realise how unpredictable life is because we never thought that day would ever come when our Zakir bhai would leave us.
When abba ji (late tabla maestro Ustad Allarakha Khan) passed away, we had Zakir bhai to look after us, look after home, to guide us and to take care of everything. But, with him gone, we feel like orphans now. Taufiq - Humare abba itne busy hote the ki humne Zakir bhai ki ungli pakad kar chalna seekha.
Sab kuch unhi ne sikhaya. Aaj unka na hona humare liye kya hai hum bata nahin sakte. The memories of the beautiful time we spent together and his music continue to inspire us.
He had a weird habit of surprising people. In fact, there were times when concert organisers weren’t sure if Zakir bhai would make it to the show or not, and he would suddenly appear on stage. Par yeh surprise, unka achanak se aise chale jaana, humein raas nahin aaya.
Zakir bhai would always say, ‘I have your back’. Woh dhaal ab nahin hai. So, now, we just have to hold each other strong and make sure we continue to fulfil his dreams.
That’s one of our key purposes in life. We really hope he will bless us with the strength to do so. How is the family coping with the loss? Taufiq - Khurshid (Aulia; sister) aapa is the oldest.
She is very brave and is coping. She has arrived in India for the barsi on February 3. But bhabhi and the daughters are heartbroken.
Fazal - When Zakir bhai passed away, his daughters – Anisa and Isabella – had to grow up suddenly. The older one, Anisa, took charge of everything after Zakir bhai’s death. Bhabhi was is a bad shape.
So, all the decisions about his burial and other ceremonies were made by Anisa, Isabella, her husband and me. What is it about Zakir ji that you wish to carry forward? Fazal - Since I am a tabla player like abba ji and Zakir bhai, I see it as my responsibility to take the legacy of our tabla style forward. I played with Zakir bhai extensively.
He never taught me. So, my learning was on the job. I learnt so much by just accompanying him.
He would never tell me what we’d play on stage. I understood that he wanted me to understand the art of being spontaneous. That was a subtle way of teaching me his style, the way he played and expressed.
Taking that forward and keeping that essence alive is my life purpose now. I always feel that I can’t add to the name earned by Abba ji and Zakir bhai, but it’s a huge responsibility to just ensure that I don’t degrade their name and stature. Taufiq - Yeh legacy itni badi hai, toh hum dono ke alawa unke har student ki - from (tabla players) Yogesh Samsi to Aditya (Kalyanpur) and Anuradha (Pal) - bhi zimmedari hai uss legacy ko aage leke jaana.
Ustad Allarakha Khan and Ustad Zakir Hussain were our A to Z of music. So, my life is dedicated to keeping that legacy alive and to continue to spread their magic. This is the first time that Ustad Allarakha Khan’s barsi concert would happen without Zakir ji.
How does that feel? Fazal - Last August, we were all together and we realised that 2025 would mark Abba ji’s 25th barsi and Zakir bhai said, ‘Achche se karenge’. Now, to make a poster of the concert with his picture in it too, is heartbreaking. Taufiq - When Zakir bhai was there, he would take care of the barsi.
So, all we had to do was participate as artistes. But now, with him gone, we had to take everything on our shoulders. We barely had any time to plan things because till the first half of this month, we were reeling in pain, didn’t know how to cope and gather ourselves.
But I feel it’s Zakir bhai’s love that has made it all possible. This was his last wish, so we are giving it our all. Even the artistes are very supportive.
They haven’t charged us anything and are looking at this as homage to Zakir bhai, besides Abba ji. The unknown tales of Ustad Zakir Hussain Zakir, the foodie Fazal - He loved burritos. He would have them after every recording.
Taufiq: He also enjoyed Jaffer Bhai’s mutton. He was also crazy about the Mutton Barra Kebab at Karim’s in Delhi. Woh sabko leke jaate the wahan.
So, when concert organisers would say that they have food arranged for him, he would say, ‘Meri flight prepone ho gayi hai’. And then he would secretly go to Karim’s (laughs). Zakir, the cricketer Fazal - Zakir bhai would play cricket with us at Simla House (his home at Napean Sea Road, Mumbai).
Hum jab shot maarte the, toh ball saamne wali building mein chali jaati thi. Zakir bhai would immediately give us money to buy a new ball. So, whenever he wouldn’t play with us, my friends would say, ‘Zakir bhai kahan hain?’ Phir unko bulaya jaata tha aur woh paise dete the.
He was a phenomenal wicketkeeper-batsman. I’ve seen him play on ground too. Taufiq - Humare Simla House wale ghar mein ek lamba passage tha.
Wahan Fazal bhai batting karte the, main kitchen ke paas fielding karta tha aur Zakir bhai balling karte the. Humari cricket ki training wahin shuru hui. Whenever the ball would go to the kitchen, our Amma would be there aur unse bahut daant padti thi.
Also, our dining table used to be our table tennis board. That was also Zakir bhai idea. A no-no for Zakir Taufiq: He hated the word ‘Ustad’.
There was a show in Delhi and the poster read Ustad Ravi Shankar (late sitar legend), Ustad Ali Akbar Khan (late sarod maestro), Ustad Allarakha Khan and Ustad Zakir Hussain. Woh gaadi se utrey aur apne naam ke saamne se Ustad hataya pen se. Then he scolded the organiser too.
Fazal: He also never liked being told anything about his health etc. Even if he was unwell, he never liked us telling him yeh dawa le lo, yeh kar lo..
