‘Mayabini’ plays as Assam's beloved son Zubeen Garg finds eternal rest

The haunting strains of "Mayabini" filled the air at Kamarkuchi NC village on September 23 as Assam bid its most emotional farewell to legendary singer Zubeen Garg, whose prophetic wish from 2019 became reality - the entire state singing his "fantasy" song as he was laid to rest with full state honours.

Years ago, Garg had declared at a public event that "Mayabini" was his fantasy, adding with uncanny prescience: "When I die, entire Assam has to sing this song." Those words rang with devastating poignancy as lakhs gathered in Kamarkuchi, where his 2001 masterpiece played continuously during the cremation ceremony, broadcast live on the government's official YouTube channel for millions more to witness.

Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, Union Minister Kiren Rijiju, and countless celebrities stood shoulder-to-shoulder with ordinary citizens as 'Zubeen Da's' sister Palme Borthakur performed the sacred 'mukhagni' ritual.

His protégé, music composer Rahul Gautam, joined her in lighting the pyre, amid chants of Vedic hymns, conch shells, and the ceremonial gun salute. Zubeen's wife, Garima Saikia Garg, sat nearby on the platform, weeping through the rituals as priests guided the family in going around the pyre seven times. A branch of sandalwood planted by Zubeen himself on his birthday in 2017 was also placed upon the pyre, adding a deeply personal touch.

The funeral procession earlier had resembled a cultural pilgrimage more than a burial march. His glass coffin, draped in the traditional Assamese 'gamosa' and surrounded by flowers, moved through the streets.

The Assam Police marked the farewell with a gun salute and the bugle call, as the crowd’s chants of ‘Zubeen, Zubeen’ merged with the song ‘Mayabini Ratir Buku,’ sung tearfully by thousands. 

The melody that had once been his creative expression transformed into Assam's collective lament, creating an atmosphere where grief and celebration merged into something transcendent. This was not just a singer's funeral, but the farewell of a cultural icon who had given Assam its voice across languages and generations.

As the flames rose and "Mayabini" continued to play, it became clear that Garg had orchestrated his own final performance. His 2001 song, which he had called his fantasy, became the soundtrack to his transformation from beloved artiste to eternal legend - exactly as he had envisioned when he asked all of Assam to sing it after his death.

The melody that began as one man's creative dream ended as an entire state's farewell hymn, ensuring that even in death, Zubeen Garg's voice would never truly be silenced.