Zakir Hussain’s family shares heartfelt tribute on Instagram after his passing, moves fans worldwide

This is the first post on Hussain’s social media page since his death at a San Francisco hospital early last week, following complications from idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, a lung disease. He was 73.

New Delhi: Days after Zakir Hussain was laid to rest at a San Francisco cemetery, the family of the tabla maestro shared a moving post on his official Instagram account on Sunday.

It marks the first post on the social media page of Hussain since his death at a San Francisco hospital early last week due to complications arising from idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, a lung disease. He was 73.
The undated black-and-white picture shows the hands of Hussain, his wife Antonia Minnecola, daughters Anisa Qureshi and Isabella Qureshi held tightly together.

“Always together in love,” read the caption of the post, tagging the four members of Hussain’s kin.

The post has since received over 21,000 likes, around 1,000 comments, and more than 300 shares on Instagram.

Hussain’s followers, including his Shakti bandmate Shankar Mahadevan, musicians Karsh Kale, Ankur Tewari, Hariharan and Pakistani artiste Ali Sethi, liked the post.

One of the world’s most accomplished percussionists, Hussain was laid to rest at the Fernwood cemetery in San Francisco on Thursday.

Hundreds of his admirers gathered at his funeral to pay their last respects. Sivamani and several other musicians played drums a little distance away to pay him a tribute.

The celebrated musician, one of India’s most well-known, received four Grammy Awards in his career spanning six decades, including three at the 66th Grammy Awards earlier this year.

Hussain, who was the son of tabla legend Ustad Alla Rakha, received the Padma Shri in 1988, the Padma Bhushan in 2002, and the Padma Vibhushan in 2023.