Hindustani classical vocalist Ajoy Chakrabarty shared a relationship of bhai chara with Zakir Hussain for over four decades and the duo collaborated on over a hundred programmes. Jayanta Basu caught up with Chakrabarty, who is on a concert tour, and the latter shared his memories of the great percussionist.
The tabla is weeping…
Zakir Bhai was a complete performer. The way he conducted himself, his way of talking, his approach, perfection and planning were unparalleled. Very few artistes can transcend to that level. I think, after his passing, the tabla must be weeping as it has lost its taj; the person who made the instrument most popular.
He gave me 60 dollars, a big amount then…
I knew Zakir Bhai since 1981 as the son of Alla Rakhaji but we grew close to each other from 1983, when I visited San Francisco on my first foreign trip under the leadership of Vijay Kichluji, along with some other great musicians. We were to perform in a series of concerts organised by Zakir Bhai. On landing in San Francisco, we were received by a very handsome person (Zakir Bhai). He drove us in a van to a motel. As he was leaving after settling us, I was standing outside.
Suddenly, he got down from the car, took out a few dollars from his pocket and gave it to me saying; “Keep this, you may need some cash”. In those days, we were used to carrying travellers’ cheques. When I protested, he reminded me that he was slightly older than me (around two years older) and insisted that I keep the money. Later, I found that he gave me 60 dollars, a big amount at that time. This is something I learnt from him — helping people financially, in a small way, when they are in need. On that trip, Zakir Bhai played tabla with me in most of the programmes and once even accompanied me on tanpura. He used to play the tanpura so well!
‘Zakir Bhai was the pioneer in fusion music in his association with the group called Shakti’
He threw his shawl into the audience…
Besides being hugely talented, Zakir Bhai’s body language during concerts set him apart. He could almost match a top-notch film star in popularity. He was second to none in his charisma and flourish. He could create ecstasy just by performing! So many times, I saw him throw his shawl into the audience while performing. His followers were so eager to get close to him; many were just mad and prepared to give up their lives for him. When he did the now-iconic ‘Wah Taj’ advertisement in the 1980s, many criticised for allegedly diluting the importance of classical music, but he told me: “I am not popularising tea; I am popularising the tabla” and he was so right.
He was special as a musician, a pioneer …
Zakir Bhai started accompanying musicians like Ali Akbar Khan Saab or Ravi Shankarji as a teenager! He always had so much respect for his guru, his father, legendary Alla Rakha Saab. He taught classical music at Ali Akbar College of Music. People often talk about solo performances but accompaniment is tougher and Zakir Bhai’s way of accompaniment was so special. Though he played the tabla more with instrumental music and less with vocals, but in both his tabla would be in tune with the vocalist or instrumental player and he never tried to display one-upmanship over the other.
Also, I must mention that he was the pioneer in fusion music in his association with the group called Shakti. So many musicians are doing fusion music now but he not only started this much much earlier but also was the most successful Indian musician of fusion music. Sometime ago, he encouraged Kaushiki (Kaushiki Chakrabarty, classical vocalist and daughter of Ajoy Chakrabarty) to try fusion music and said that he would get her in touch with the appropriate collaborators in the West. He loved Kaushiki and Ananjan (son of Ajay Chakrabarty) so much.
A snap when Ustad Zakir Hussain accompanied Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty for the last time in Pune in January 2024
We reached the ‘som’ exactly on the same point…
Zakir Bhai must have accompanied me about a hundred times on stage and in recordings and all those memories are coming rushing back. A couple of those memories are extra special. We were playing at a concert in Florence, Italy, probably in 1991. The stage was a bit makeshift but we performed in tandem! I sang raga Jaunpuri and we were taking separate routes but every time, we reached the som exactly on the same point; it was really extremely satisfying. Another was my first khayal recording where he accompanied me on the tabla. While Sultan Khan Saab was on the sarangi and my guruji Jnanprakash Ghosh was on the harmonium. It was an ethereal experience.
He drove from Mumbai to Lonavala to bring freshly prepared ghee for me…
He was a great human being; I am not saying this because he is no more. Once I had a programme in Mumbai, where he was supposed to play the accompaniment. I had a sore throat and when he came in the morning to meet me before the programme, he saw my condition and asked how I would sing! He left after some time and promised to come back at 4pm. Do you know what he did? He drove all the way from Mumbai to Lonavala to fetch freshly prepared ghee from somebody he knew. He gave me the ghee and asked me to have it with turmeric to cure the throat! After I started Shrutinandan, he came so many times to perform in programmes for my musical institution but never accepted a single penny. As a matter of fact, once he came directly from San Francisco, got into a hotel different from the one I had booked for him so that some money could be saved; and then he left for San Francisco the next day after the programme, entirely on his own money!
We shared rooms and did ‘riyaaz’ together…
Zakir Bhai would say we share a bhai chara. I remember that early in our careers we would go on long ITC classical music concert trips that stretched for more than a month and covered 8 to 12 thousand kilometres, often including smaller towns. On those trips, we spent a lot of time together, even sharing rooms. Often we did our riyaaz together. I still remember how he was used to creating several sound modes from various parts of tabla. He was always researching to create soundscapes and trying to build a blend of eastern and western music.
The last time we performed together was on January 14 this year at a concert in Pune. When I underwent an operation sometime ago, he enquired with Kaushiki about my health … I have lost a great friend.
