No celebrations, only homage: Women's ODI World Cup opener dedicated to Zubeen Garg

Guwahati: In any other time, Durga Puja festival coinciding with Cricket World Cup opener would be double delight for the residents of this part of the world.

But these are not normal circumstances for people living in cities, towns and villages across Assam, for they are still struggling to come to terms with the tragic death of their beloved singer and cultural icon, Zubeen Garg.

The puja festivities have begun and the Women's World Cup opener (involving India) in Guwahati is just two days away, but the state capital remains unusually quiet and the atmosphere sombre more than a week after the death that caused widespread shock and mourning among his millions of fans and the cultural communities he represented.

All that people are thinking and talking about is their 'Zubeen da', whose "eternal voice" echoed across Assam for three decades, the musician having sung more than 38,000 songs in 40 languages.

"A voice that lives on...Zubeen Garg November 18, 1972-Forever," reads a giant board outside the Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport.

At the ACA Barsapara Stadium, another large board says simply: "Shraddhanjali Zubeen Garg." Such is the mood here that the Assam Cricket Association (ACA) has "redesigned" the theme of the World Cup opening ceremony, turning the celebration into a homage" to Zubeen.

BCCI secretary Devjit Saikia said the change was necessary given the emotions across the state.

"The match is being held on the cusp of two extremes but despite the challenges, cricket must go on," Saikia told PTI.

"First, the entire state is in mourning, sadness and grief all over after the untimely death of their favourite Zubeen Garg.

"Now there's the peak festival time of Durga Puja, the biggest festival of the region here. The match is happening on the cusp of these two events. We have to take it forward somehow." According to reports, Garg died on September 19 in Singapore from drowning while swimming in the sea without a life jacket. He was 52.

Saikia added, "We have redesigned the entire opening ceremony. Earlier it was a celebration for the inauguration of the World Cup. Now it would be entirely dedicated to son of soil Zubeen Garg. The opening ceremony will pay homage to him." The first segment would be of 40 minutes and would start at 2pm and pay homage to Garg with performances by Angaraag 'Papon' Mahanta, Joi Barua, and the Shillong Chamber Choir.

Renowned singer Shreya Ghosal will enthral the crowd with a 13-minute performance dedicated to Zubeen, during the mid-innings break.

Five thousand tickets have been reserved exclusively for members of the Zubeen Garg Fan Club by ACA, available at the GSA Office, Nehru Stadium, Guwahati, while 10,000 complimentary passes have been given to members, Saikia said.

"In 2023, we had hosted four warm-up matches (of the men's World Cup) but the real World Cup in Guwahati will begin from Tuesday," Saikia said, expressing gratitude to ICC chairman Shri Jay Shah for allocating four games to Guwahati, marking a historic moment for Assam and the northeast.

Former captains of the Indian women's cricket team will also attend the ceremony, celebrating the growth and legacy of women's cricket in India.

For many, the cricket is only one part of the day.

"Fans are turning up for Zubeen," said BookMyShow supervisor Anurag Pandey giving figures that only 12,000 tickets have been sold for the 38,000-capacity stadium.

"And all these tickets were sold just for Zubeen Garg's homage. The stadium will echo with his iconic hit 'Mayabini Ratir Bukut', a song that Zubeen Garg wished for his fans to sing after his death," Pandey said.

"12000 woh bhi Zubeen bhai ke liye (all for Zubeen bhai). Looking at the people who gathered to pay homage in his final journey one can say he has the world's second largest fan base after Michael Jackson." He remembered how Assam came to a standstill when Zubeen's body arrived here on September 21.

"30-35 lakh from airport to Sarusajai, 2 days 20-25 lakh people, at Sonapur there were 25 lakh people.

"Zubeen was fully raw, no showoff, he gave all to charity. He would eat in footpath, talk to people on footpath. No celebrity lifestyle. Totally raw, that's why everyone loved him." "There were four days of complete lockdown. Not even a small cigarette shop was open and they all did it on their own," he said.

Pankaj Bordoloi, a cab driver from Zubeen's native Jorhat and also his neighbour in Guwahati, recalled how grounded he was.

"He spoke to everyone with respect and that's why everyone loved him. Never counted money and doled out money to needy. He was such a big celebrity, but still did not have a proper house.

"He would sleep in day time and roam around at nights. There was not a single person that day who did not cry. Everyone including the police officers shed tears.

"He never did any politics, and spoke his hearts out, so people loved him.

"He chose not to have any child and would say that all orphans, street children are 'my kids'. He would sponsor them. He would say if I have kids I would not be able to love them, so I would not have kids," said Bordoloi.

This is the fourth time India is hosting the Women's ODI World Cup, after 1978, 1997 and 2013. The final will be held on November 2, either in Mumbai or Colombo, depending on Pakistan's qualification.