Guwahati, Sept 25 : As the pyres turned to smoke and Zubeen Garg's mortal remains merged with the air amid a sea of tears in Sonapur on the outskirts of Guwahati on Tuesday, the grief travelled far beyond Assam's borders. In Colombo, nearly 3,200 kilometres away, two young boys from Assam sat quietly in their team hotel room, their eyes moist, their hearts heavy. Rahan Ahmed of Sivasagar and Manashjyoti Baruah of Duliajan are part of the India Under-17 football team currently playing in the SAFF U- 17 Championship in Sri Lanka. Both grew up listening to Zubeen's voice, both carried his songs in their playlists, and both, like countless youngsters from Assam, drew strength and hope from him.

"Zubeenda has been our inspiration. His immortal. songs gave us hope when things were down," Rahan

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