Zubin Mehta was born in 1936 in a musical family in Mumbai, India. His father Mevan Mehta was an outstanding violinist, violin teacher and conductor, leader of the Bombay Symphony Orchestra and String Quartet. the founder of. Zubin Mehta received formal violin and piano education at the age of 7, so he was already very familiar with European music at a very young age. As a student of his father, he conducted the Bombay Symphony Orchestra at the age of 16. But he followed his parents' wishes and studied medicine. But after taking classes for two semesters, he turned to music. When he was 18 years old, he went to the Vienna Conservatory of Music to study piano and composition. Completed conducting studies under Hans Swarovsky.

In 1958, he won the Liverpool International Conducting Competition and served as deputy conductor of a local orchestra. In his 20s, Mehta has already conducted the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. And to this day, they still maintain a close working relationship. He won second place in the American Tanglewood Conducting Competition (first place was Abbado). At this time he met Charles Mensch, conductor of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, who had a profound influence on Mehta. In 1960, he performed for the first time with the New York Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra and Montreal Symphony Orchestra. From 1962 to 1966, he also served as chief conductor of the Montreal Symphony Orchestra.

Zubin Mehta served as music director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic from 1962 to 1978. He also became the music consultant of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra in 1969, was promoted to chief conductor in 1977, and was appointed lifelong music director in 1981. In 1978, he became music director of the New York Philharmonic, which lasted 13 years until the arrival of his successor Kurt Masur.