When Zakir Hussain was first addressed as ‘Ustad’ by Pandit Ravi Shankar

Hussain recalled, "When the Padma Shri award was announced for me, it was 4 am. Someone came with a newspaper. I was performing at St. Xavier's College in Mumbai with Pandit Ravishankar ji. My father, Ustad Allah Rakha, was also sitting in the front row."

Mumbai: Ustad Zakir Hussain, who passed away on Monday, December 16, at the age of 73, was the youngest Indian to receive the Padma Shri award.

It was at that time that he was addressed as ‘Ustad’ for the first time by Pandit Ravi Shankar. He received the Padma Shri in 1988. In an old interview with the national channel DD, Ustad Zakir Hussain narrated an interesting anecdote about the time he received the Padma Shri.

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Hussain recalled, “When the Padma Shri award was announced for me, it was 4 am. Someone came with a newspaper. I was performing at St. Xavier’s College in Mumbai with Pandit Ravishankar ji. My father, Ustad Allah Rakha, was also sitting in the front row.”

He continued, “I think someone came and whispered in his ear, informing him about my Padma Shri, as it had been published in the newspapers. He got really excited. My father somehow managed to send the message to Pandit Ravi Shankar Ji on stage.” Zakir Hussain added, “Panditji (Pandit Ravi Shankar) announced my Padma Shri on stage. It was the first time he addressed me as ‘Ustad’.”

He highlighted, “It was a very special moment for me, as it was announced in front of my father and Pandit Ravi Shankar Ji, two of my biggest inspirations.”

Ustad Zakir Hussain was also awarded the Padma Bhushan in 2002 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2023. Apart from these, he received the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1990.

He has received multiple international honours and awards, including five Grammy Awards. In 2024, he won three Grammys on the same day, making him the first Indian artist to achieve this feat.

The awards were for Best Global Music Performance for ‘Pashto’, Best Contemporary Instrumental Album for ‘As We Speak’, and Best Instrumental Composition for ‘Motion.’