Zakir Hussain, the master of the tabla, has paid a touching tribute to Pandit Shivkumar Sharma, the master of the santoor. Bollywoodirect shared a photo collage on Twitter showing Zakir as one of the pallbearers at Pandit Shivkumar’s funeral, carrying the late santoor maestro’s body. In another photo, the tabla maestro is seen standing alone near the funeral pyre of Pandit Shivkumar Sharma, his hands folded. “Yes, This is my India,” a fan responded to the post.
Earlier this week, the late santoor player was cremated with full state honours in the presence of family and close friends. The 83-year-old musician died of a heart attack at his Pali Hill home on May 10 morning. His funeral was held at Vile Parle’s Pawan Hans Crematorium after a guard of honour in Juhu, where his mortal remains were kept for people to pay their respects.
There were members of the musician’s family in attendance, including wife Manorama and sons Rahul and Rohit, as well as friends from the fraternity, including long-time collaborator Hari Prasad Chaurasia and Zakir. His sons performed his last rites, which were followed by a gun salute.
Actors Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bachchan, Shabana Azmi, lyricist Javed Akhtar, music composer duo Jatin-Lalit, and singer Ila Arun were among the celebrities who paid their respects at his Abhijit Cooperative Housing Society home.
Pandit Shivkumar Sharma, one of India’s most well-known classical musicians, is credited with bringing the Jammu and Kashmir folk instrument santoor to the international stage. Along with flautist Pt Hari Prasad Chaurasia, he straddled the world of Indian cinema as one half of the famous Shiv-Hari composer duo. Silsila, Lamhe, Chandni, and Darr were among the films for which they composed music. In 1986, he was awarded the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, then the Padma Shri in 1991 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2001.
Amitabh wrote an emotional note in memory of Shivkumar Sharma on his blog. Sharma played the santoor, a special instrument from the valleys of Kashmir. He and Hari Prasad Chaurasia ji were a dua for film music.
