22/09/2025
There was a time when Assam was passing through its darkest hours…insurgency, the Assam Andolan, secret killings. Fear, uncertainty, and tears seemed to drown out every other feeling.
And then came a young boy from Jorhat, with nothing more than a bicycle and a guitar, leaving his mother’s home to chase the uncertain path of music, and composed his first album ‘Anamika’ in 1992 . That was the beginning of a journey that would change the soul of Assam forever.
Since then, Zubeen daa has composed and sung over 39,000 songs, songs that became the heartbeat of generations. For the Assamese people, his voice was not just music, but memory, comfort, and hope. We grew up with his songs. We learned the language of love through his melodies. His voice was there when we were heartbroken, when we were tired, when we were hopeless. A voice so magical, so deeply soothing, that it penetrated straight into the heart. He sang in the language of the people….the very language in which we think, talk, and dream.
Ask anyone in Assam about their first love, and you will often hear just one answer: Zubeen da.
But Zubeen was more than a voice. He was a fearless soul. Unapologetic, free, and unwilling to bow to fame or hypocrisy, he became the true heartthrob of Assam. For the youth, he was not just an icon but a role model. He always claimed : “I have no religion, no creed, no God. I am free. I am a human who simply loves everyone and wants to be loved.”
He never craved respect or wealth….he only sought love. What he earned, he gave away. There are countless stories of people he helped: patients in need, struggling musicians, ordinary men and women who came to his doorstep. Many waited for hours outside his studio seeking help, and Zubeen never said no. Sometimes, he had to borrow money from his driver because he had already given away whatever he had in his wallet.
Young singers, artists, anyone who approached him…he supported them. H
