Guru's blessings are bigger than any award: Zakir

by SACHIN CHATTE
Posted on 2009-02-10
It is not very often that artists win a Grammy award and though Ustad Zakir Hussain’s credentials don’t need the testimony of any such honour, it is still a good enough reason to cheer. Reacting to the awards, the first thing the percussionist mentioned was that if a guru gives blessings or some senior artists says something nice, no one cares, but if another country gives you some recognition, every one talks about it.
“Only twice in my life, I got a nod from my guru, my father (Late Ustad Allah Rakha) who thought I played reasonably well and for me, that is the biggest award I could have ever got,” said the tabla maestro in all humility.
As for his first reaction on winning his second Grammy, he said that he was fast asleep when he first heard the news from daughter. The phone kept buzzing, after that there is no stopping, said the winner of the Grammy in the contemporary World Music Album category for his collaborative album ‘Global Drum Project’. He won his first Grammy in the year 1991, for the World Music album ‘Planet Drum’. “It is a nice feeling though to be recognised by your own peers and competing with such names that were nominated was itself something to be proud of,” he added. One unfulfilled wish of his though is to win a Grammy, not for the sake of it, but for an album that has pure Indian classical music.
“Collaborating with western artists makes it easier in a way to get recognition but hopefully someday we will be able to emulate Pt. Ravi Shankar who has won a Grammy for an Indian classical music album,” said the Ustad.
Reacting to the news, percussionist Sivamani was excited that Indian musicians are making their mark on the world music scene. “Zakir bhai who is like my elder brother has got the Grammy and God willing, A R Rahman who is like my younger brother will bring home the Oscar,” he said.
Singer Shankar Mahadevan said that although the news is great, it hasn’t really surprised him. “There is no award big enough for someone like Ustad Zakir Hussain. He is beyond such awards. Nevertheless we are happy for him and the Grammy is certainly another feather in his cap,” he said calling Ustad Zakir Hussain as the God of Tabla.