Ghulam Muhammad Zaz

Ghulam Muhammad Zaz is a Kashmiri craftsman who makes musical instruments by hand, above all the santoor. He was named for the Padma Shri in 2023 in the field of art, from Jammu and Kashmir ^[1].

Seven generations before him

Zaz was born on 1 January 1948 ^[2]. As a child he watched his grandfather Rehman Joo Zaz, his father Abdul Ahad Zaz and his uncle Ghulam Rasool Zaz at work, and started helping them alongside school ^[2]. The family was known in the time of the Maharaja, and some of its instruments are kept in a museum in Srinagar ^[2]. It made Kashmiri instruments such as the sitar, santoor, saaz, sarang and rabab, as well as the Indian santoor, dilruba, tanpura and surbahar ^[2].

He turned down good job offers to carry on the family’s work, and is the eighth generation to practise it ^[2]. He may also be the last: his three daughters have chosen other careers ^[2].

Instruments for the masters

A Kashmiri santoor made by Zaz was brought into Indian classical music and Hindi film music by Pandit Shivkumar Sharma ^[2]. The instrument was known for its unusual tone and was played on the lap rather than on a table ^[2]. The santoor player Bhajan Sopori also played an instrument made by him ^[2].