Ayub Bachchu was slated to perform at a concert in Rajshahi yesterday, and while his fate was written otherwise, thousands of music lovers of the city, and the performing musicians at the event, paid rich tributes to the recently-deceased rock icon.

The concert, titled “Shekorer Sandhaney” held at the city's Liberation War Memorial Stadium, began with a one-minute silence to pay respects to Bachchu, who passed away in the capital on Thursday of a cardiac arrest, at the age of 56.

And then, as the organisers played one of his most iconic songs “Sei Tumi” on the loudspeakers, the audience sang their hearts out in unison, waving the flashlights of their cell phones in the air.

Other performers at the concert, including Abdul Kuddus Boyati, Chisti Baul, Oyshee, Ringku, Jane Alam, Reshmi, Pulok and Shamim also remembered Ayub Bachchu, dedicated their songs to Bachchu, a pioneering guitarist and the founder of popular band LRB.

More than 10,000 people enjoyed the concert, organised by the cultural affairs ministry with an aim to spread the ideologies of the Liberation War and promote the government's development activities.