A tabla virtuoso, who loved Lko's culture, cuisine

LUCKNOW: The magician on the tabla, Ustad Zakir Hussain, was not just a maestro of music but a man of humility personified.

- Anupam Srivastava

His ability to make the tabla "talk," creating melodies that resonated deeply with listeners, was legendary.

Rajeev K Mahaveer, a music composer and tabla master himself, fondly recalled the Ustad's extraordinary talent. "My father and his father were friends," he said. "My father, K Mahaveer, was a music composer in Bollywood, and he asked Ustad Alla Rakkha, (Zakir's father), to accept me as his disciple.

"I was a disciple of Ustad Alla Rakkha, which made Zakir and me Gurubhai. We performed numerous programmes together. For me, Zakir was not just a musical genius; he was always an elder brother. I remember that once he drove two hours to meet me in New York and then returned home because he wanted to cook dinner for me. He was a truly courteous person."