Ghulam Muhammad Zaz is an artist from Zaina Kadal, from downtown Srinagar (Shehar-i-Khaas). He is known for making Santoor and other handcrafted traditional musical instruments. He is known to be the last Santoor maker of Kashmir.

On 26 January 2023, at the age of 82, he was honoured with Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award in India. “My eight generations have been into the making of santoor and other handcrafted musical instruments, but the recognition has come in now,” says Zaz.

In the Old City’s Zaina Kadal, Ghulam Mohammad Zaz lives in a traditional house , nearly 300 years old, overlooking the historic Budshah tomb. His workspace is a small mud plastered room of around 80 square feet, on the third floor accessed by a very narrow staircase.

Zaz was born in 1941, at Zaina Kadal. He has been making traditional Kashmiri musical instruments like Santoor, Rabab and Sarangi since 1953.

He is the last and the 8th generation of the family who are known for making finest santoor in the valley over the past many decades. His family had learnt the art of making and repairing Kashmir’s musical instruments like Santoor, Sarangi, Taaoos, Saaz-e-Kashmiri, Dilruba and Saitaar (Kashmiri Sitar), many of which are extinct now.

Kashmir has a rich variety of musical instruments such as Tumbaknari, Sarang, Rabab, Noet, Nai, Santoor, Sitar, Saz-e-Kashmir etc. and every musical instrument has its own sound, importance, and historical background.

Zaz has learnt the art of making Santoor from his grandfather, Rahman Joo and father, Abdul Ahad Zaz. All instruments made by them mention ‘Rehman Joo Zaz & Sons, manufacturers and dealers of all kinds of musical instruments’.

Apart from Kashmiri santoor, Zaz family was famous for making other old musical instruments like rabab, Kashmiri sitar and sarangi. “Sone Joo Zaz and Khaliq Joo Zaz are my elders. They are our gurus. Such skillful artists will not be found today and also our great customers like Shiv Kumar Sharma and Bhajan Sopori who took the Kashmiri Santoor on an international platform” says Ghulam Mohammad Zaz. From musical legends like Ustad Mohammad Abdullah Tibetbaqal to Sheikh Abdul Aziz to more contemporary artistes like Pandit Shiv Kumar Sharma to Bhajan Sopori, the Sufi music that emerged presented a beautiful picture of what Kashmir’s composite culture was.

The Indian santoor instrument is a trapezoid-shaped hammered dulcimer, and a variation of the Iranian santur. The instrument is generally made of walnut and has 25 bridges. The almond forest wood is no longer available in the market. It was soundproof and would help in improving the tonal quality. It was seasoned for a long time and it was finished so that no insects will damage it.

Santoor plays an important role in Kashmiri folk and Sufiyana music. It was played in a style of music known as the Sufiana Mausiqi. Zaz said that earlier people would assemble together and the santoor was played in the remembrance of God. Later on, it found its way in classical music.This instrument emits loud and enchanting sounds.

The shape of Santoor is trapezoidal. Its right side is called burn and the left Jil. Twelve wires on the right side are of brass and those on the left are of iron. There are also twelve knobs on the right and twelve on the left side. Four wires are fixed to each nob. The production of the tune depends on the nobs.

Kashmiri Santoor has 100 strings. When it came under Indian Classical Music, the numbers of strings were reduced. In Indian santoor playing, the specially-shaped mallets (mezrab) are lightweight and are held between the index and middle fingers. A typical santoor has two sets of bridges, providing a range of three octaves. Each bridge has 4 strings, making for a total of 100 strings. It was called Shatha Tantri Veena in ancient Sanskrit texts.

The Indian santoor is more rectangular and can have more strings than its Persian counterpart, which generally has 72 strings. Musical instruments very similar to the santoor are traditionally used all over the world.

To complete one musical instrument like the santoor, it takes Mohammad Ghulam Zaz a month or more, which fetches him just Rs.20, 000.

Zaz has three daughters. None among his cousins, siblings, or their children learned this art. He says: “I feel elated when I see santoor and other instruments like rabab being widely taken up in European countries like Germany. Even foreign tourists who come visiting Kashmir do drop in at Siraj Bazaar to see how these instruments are made. Over the years, I have dealt not only with domestic buyers but foreigners as well. Since they want some tweak to these instruments, we have the know how to do that.”

It not just the shape of the instrument which is important, we also need to be mindful of the sounds that will be generated by the instruments. We have to ensure that the instrument sounds good, or else the player or the buyer will be left disappointed. A lot of sound testing goes into the processing, and no machines are used for this. Basically, it takes experience to ensure that the instruments are crafted in such a manner that they sound good.