Born in Cairo, was one of the great composers of his age, strictly keeping the Eastern spirit in tunes and performances he refusede to give in to modern developments in music.

He performed some tunes in his own voice such as "Roses are beautiful" sang by Om Kolthoum.

He was affected by his father who was fond of the Arabic songs. Having got the primary certificate he joined Al-Azhar and mastered reciting the holy Qur'an. Due to his deep love for singing, he joined Sheikh Ali Mahmoud's and Ismail Sukkar's troupes. People then began to recognize Zakareya's voice.

He then shifted to practice his art as musical composer in 1919 – 1922. But in 1924 he turned to the musical theatre.

He composed about 60 songs for Om Kolthoum alone. He cooperated with the poet Beiram al-Tunsi in many of his works.