New Delhi, May 17 -- Assamese was, of course, his mother tongue, the language in which he thought and dreamed, the linguistic landscape that felt like home. But the Northeast's complex demographics meant that multilingualism was practical necessity as much as cultural richness. Growing up with frequent relocations due to his father's transfers, Zubeen had been exposed to Bengali, Hindi, Bodo and various other languages and dialects that populated the region's linguistic ecosystem.

His claim to being 'half-Bengali' was not mere rhetoric but reflected genuine cultural immersion. The Bengali influence in Assamese cultural life has been profound and sometimes controversial, with debates about whether Bengali culture enriches or threatens Ass...