Popular singer Zubeen Garg, who had sung in 40 languages including Bengali, Hindi, and Assamese, died in Singapore on September 19, 2025 (Friday). The 52-year-old singer was in Singapore to participate in the North East India Festival last week. On Sunday morning, his body was flown to Guwahati from Delhi after it reached the national capital on Saturday.
After Zubeen Garg's tragic death, fans are recalling his filmi love story with his wife and fashion designer Garima Saikia Garg.
A Love Story That Started With A Fan Letter
As per local reports, Zubeen himself admitted that he had multiple girlfriends during his school and college days. Characters like Junmoni and Runjun from his early romances even shaped his creative work, such as Junmoni Rumjun.
Garima Saikia, also a costume designer, reportedly was the one who took the initiative, sending a fan letter to Zubeen after being mesmerised by his albums Anamika and Maya. Garima was studying in Mumbai at the time and was feeling homesick. When she was facing tough times, she found hope in Zubeen's songs.
But destiny had its own plans. Zubeen didn't reply to every female fan's mail, but he responded to Garima's letter and their love blossomed.
From exchanging letters to a whirlwind of romance, Zubeen and Garima's love story was one of a kind. But it was no cakewalk. Garima's family, particularly her father, was not in favour of their relationship. It is said that Garima also couldn't deal with Zubeen's "restless behaviour" at times and decided to walk away from the relationship.
As per reports, after separation, Zubeen went into depression, something which also had an impact on his work. After a roller-coaster ride, the couple finally got married on February 4, 2002.
For more than two decades, Garima stood by Zubeen during the highs and lows of his career and creative restlessness like a rock-solid partner.
Garima's Video Message
In a viral video, Garima was seen crying inconsolably when she received Zubeen's body at the Guwahati airport.
In a previous video shared on Zubeen's official Instagram handle, Garima addressed fans in Assamese and urged them with folded hands to maintain peace during her husband's final journey.
Multiple FIRs have been filed against Syamkanu Mahanta - the chief organiser of North East India Festival and Sidharth Sarma - Zubeen's manager - in connection with the singer's sudden death.
In her video, Garima also asked fans to let Sidharth Sarma participate in Zubeen's last rites.
How Zubeen Died
Initial reports suggested that Zubeen Garg died in a scuba diving accident. Later, the Assam Chief Minister clarified that Zubeen was swimming without a life jacket and fell unconscious. The Singapore High Commission cited drowning as the cause of death in the singer's death certificate. But the Assam government is trying to procure the post-mortem report to ascertain the cause of death.