Tabla maestro Zakir Hussain, 73, has been admitted to the ICU of a San Francisco hospital due to heart-related issues, according to his family and friends on Sunday. Hussain, who has brought the tabla to the global stage, had been struggling with blood pressure problems, as confirmed by his manager, Nirmala Bachani.
The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting initially announced Zakir Hussain’s death on its X page but later removed the post.
“He has been admitted to a hospital in San Francisco for a heart-related problem for the last two weeks,” Bachani told PTI
Amid false reports of his death, Hussain’s sister Khursheed clarified to PTI that while her brother remains “very very critical,” he is still alive. “My brother is deeply ill at this time. We are asking all his fans around India and around the world to pray for him, to pray for his health. But as India’s greatest ever exports, do not finish him off just yet,” she said.
She further urged the media to refrain from spreading misinformation: “I just want to request all the media not to follow wrong information about Zakir’s passing. He is very much breathing at the moment. He is very very critical, but he’s still with us. He has not yet gone. So, I will request (the media) not to spread this rumour by writing or saying that he has passed away. I feel so bad watching all this information on Facebook which is very wrong,” she added.
Hussain’s publicist also confirmed to the news agency that the percussionist is being treated in San Francisco and is “very much alive.”
