Grammy Awards organisers Recording Academy faced flak for excluding the late tabla maestro Zakhir Hussain from its In-Memoriam section on Monday, with fans calling it a shocker.

Hussain, who made history by becoming the first Indian to win three Grammy Awards in 2024, passed away on December 15 at the age of 73 due to idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. He was undergoing treatment at a hospital in San Francisco.

A section of social media users on Monday flooded X with posts and comments calling out the Grammy organisers. “Dude, where the hell is Ustaad Zakir Hussain???” an X user wrote, sharing Chris Martin’s performance which paid tribute to musicians like Liam Payne, Cissy Houston, Tito Jackson, Joe Chambers, Jack Jones, Mary Martin, Marianne Faithfull, Seiji Ozawa, and Ella Jenkins.

Another user wrote, “How did you guys forget to include #GRAMMYs winner from 2024, Ustad Zakir Hussain, in your ‘In Memoriam’ segment? @RecordingAcad #Grammys2025 @coldplay.”

“Shame not to see 4-time winner and multiple times nominee Zakir Hussain in the Grammy tribute to artists lost recently. Real shame. SVP #GRAMMYs #Grammys2025 #ZakirHussain @RecordingAcad” reads another post.

Another X user spoke about Zakir Hussian’s influence on Western culture. The user wrote, “Mind-boggling that Zakir Hussain wasn’t given a tribute tonight. He had won 4 Grammys himself and was a huge influence even on Western culture.”

The legendary tabla maestro is survived by his widow, Antonia Minnecola, and their two daughters, Anisa Qureshi and Isabella Qureshi. With an illustrious career spanning over six decades, Hussain collaborated with numerous esteemed international and Indian artists, but one of his most notable projects was the 1973 musical fusion with English guitarist John McLaughlin, violinist L Shankar, and percussionist TH ‘Vikku’ Vinayakram.

The percussionist was honoured with three Grammy awards last year in the categories of Best Global Music Performance, Best Contemporary Instrumental Album, and Best Global Music Album with musicians Béla Fleck, Edgar Meyer, Rakesh Chaurasia and world-fusion band Shakti.

He was one of India's most celebrated classical musicians, honoured with the Padma Shri in 1988, the Padma Bhushan in 2002, and the Padma Vibhushan in 2023.