Fans Seek to Preserve and Clarify Ownership of Zubeen Garg’s Music Legacy After His Death

Zubeen Garg, a beloved singer and composer from Assam, India, died in Singapore at age 52, leaving behind a vast discography of over 38,000 songs in more than 40 languages. Fan Vishal Kalita has amassed a private museum in Guwahati with thousands of Garg’s rare cassettes, CDs, and posters, some containing tracks unavailable elsewhere. Garg himself visited the collection days before his death, reminiscing about forgotten works. Now, fans and associates are working to digitize these analog recordings and upload them to streaming platforms while ensuring royalties reach his family. However, unclear copyright ownership—split among producers, distributors, and labels—complicates efforts. Under India’s Copyright Act of 1957, lyricists and composers own lyrics and melodies, but producers own sound recordings, often transferred without documentation in the cassette era. Many of Garg’s 1990s and 2000s tracks lack clear chains of custody, with former distributors deceased or defunct. The Indian Performing Right Society (IPRS) has registered over 1,033 songs and guarantees royalties for 60 years post-mortem. The case highlights broader issues in Indian music, echoing disputes involving icons like SP Balasubrahmanyam and Lata Mangeshkar, and underscores the streaming era’s impact on ownership and artist compensation.