Assam Bids Farewell to Beloved Rockstar Zubeen Garg with His Favourite Song

Assam Bids Farewell to Zubeen Garg with His Favourite Song ‘Mayabini’

“When I die, Assam should sing this song,” Zubeen Garg had once said about ‘Mayabini’, from the 2001 Assamese film Daag. On Tuesday, his words became reality. As the state bid goodbye to its most loved rockstar with full honours and a 21-gun salute, thousands of fans sang ‘Mayabini’ in unison, their voices breaking through grief.

Zubeen, who died in Singapore on September 19, was cremated at Kamarkuchi near Guwahati after a second autopsy ruled out foul play. The funeral drew a sea of mourners, with Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, Union Minister Kiren Rijiju, Speaker Biswajit Daimary and former CM Sarbananda Sonowal among those paying tribute.

A Sea of Mourners

From the Arjun Bhogeswar Baruah Sports Complex to the cremation ground, thousands walked in the scorching heat alongside the cortege. His four dogs — Iko, Diya, Rambo and Maya — were also brought by his family for a final farewell.

At the cremation ground, his wife Garima Saikia Garg stood weeping beside the pyre, dressed in a traditional mekhela chador. His sister Palme Borthakur and protégé Rahul Gautam lit the pyre as fans sang the song he loved most.

The Voice of a Generation

Assam had already witnessed an outpouring of grief a day earlier, when crowds lined the 25-km route from the airport to his home to see him one last time.

Born in Meghalaya, Zubeen stormed into Assam’s music scene in the early 1990s and went on to sing in over 40 languages. He became a household name across India with “Ya Ali” from the 2006 Bollywood film Gangster.

For Assam, however, Zubeen was far more than a playback singer — he was a cultural icon whose music gave voice to a generation. On Tuesday, as ‘Mayabini’ echoed through Kamarkuchi, the farewell felt less like an ending and more like the beginning of his legend.