Zakir Hussain Dies at 73: Tabla Maestro No More, Confirms Family

Tabla maestro Zakir Hussain died at a hospital in San Francisco, his family said on Monday, December 16. Hussain died due to complications arising out of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, according to his family. He was 73.

He had been hospitalised for the last two weeks and was later taken to the ICU as his condition deteriorated. Reports of his death had circulated earlier, prompting his sister, Khursheed, to tell the news agency PTI that Hussain was "very very critical" but "very much breathing at the moment."

The tweet (screenshot attached) is being deleted as the original tweet by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has been deleted. An update or official confirmation from family, hospital or the consulate in San Fransisco (where there are reports he is undergoing health… pic.twitter.com/tgYImopnew

— ANI (@ANI) December 15, 2024

The Broadcasting Ministry of Information had announced Hussain's passing on social media a few hours earlier, but later deleted the statement.

Also Read | X user claiming to be Ustad Zakir Hussain's nephew refutes the reports of his uncle's death.

Zakir Hussain Career

Hussain has received four Grammy Awards in his career, including three at the 66th Grammy Awards earlier this year. In his six-decade career, the musician has worked with several renowned international and Indian artists. However, his 1973 musical project with English guitarist John McLaughlin, violinist L Shankar, and percussionist TH 'Vikku' Vinayakram brought together Indian classical and jazz elements in a fusion hitherto unknown.

The percussionist, one of India's most celebrated classical musicians, received the Padma Shri in 1988, the Padma Bhushan in 2002, and the Padma Vibhushan in 2023.