The year was 1991. Acclaimed Indian director Mani Ratnam has just finished directing 'Thalapathy' with Superstar Rajinikanth and Mamooty. The film, inspired by the story Karna in the Hindu holy book Mahabharatha, was a huge success. All over the place 'Rakkama Kaya Thattu' and 'Yamunai Aatrile' are the songs that are being widely heard in India. The verdict in the town is anonymous- Mani Ratnam and composer Illaiyaraja's combination is wonderful. Whats next?- that was the question.
But ironically, next never came. A certain A.R. Rahman, or to be more precise, full name Alla Rakha Rahman was a keyboardist working with Illaiyaraja at that time, and he was also a composer for ad jingles. He was 25 years old. Mani Ratnam announced that his next film will have music from this ad jingle composer. Everybody were perplexed at that decision. Many predicted that Ratnam is bringing in a premature end to a blossoming director-composer combination between him and Raaja and that he will regret it. Thalapathy's music was stupendous, how better can this new bloke AR Rahman possibly give?
He certainly did give enough to silence all the doubters. They had to pick up their jaws from the ground after hearing to the music of Mani Ratnam's next, 'Roja'. All hailed Mani Ratnam for introducing such a talent. And also now everybody understood perfectly just why Mani Ratnam decided to part ways with Raaja when their combination looks like getting better. Mani, after years of achieving success in the Tamil film industry, was eager to find some recognition on a nationwide basis- which basically he wanted music that not only transcended local-styled melody, but music which has more technology, in tune with the changing times, and also a music that can be dubbed and would still retain the same zeal. And that is what exactly AR Rahman not only gave Mani Ratnam, but also gave Indian cinema. Mani Ratnam has introduced India's greatest asset on the musical front. 'Kaadhal Rojave', the stunning melody sung by the singing legend SP Balasubramaniam, was dubbed into Hindi and met into similar success as it did down south. Not only that song, but 'Pudhu Vezhi Mazhai' also had sounds reminiscent of the new wave of technological sounds that have been coming from the West. India has found its own maestro. But the biggest achievement of all in this debut soundtrack of Rahman is that he introduced a new voice- Ghazal singer Hariharan. Hariharan today has elevated himself to his own lagendary status, well known for his light, melodious voice that have intoxicated millions of souls in India. Rahman also became the first ever composer in Indian history to win a Filmfare award for his very first film. That says it all.
From there, was no turning back. AR Rahman conquered the Indian music arena and subsequently eclipsed his very own ex-employer, Illaiyaraja. His combination with his mentor Mani Ratnam especially was breath-taking. In 1993, Rahman and Ratnam came together for Mani's 'Thiruda Thiruda'. The film was especially noticeable for Rahman's use of technology and new sounds minced with regular Indian film music, resulting in an unique, revolutionary score. The song 'Chandralekha' was so popular and also helped set the mood for cameraman PC Sriram to try new shooting techniques during picturization, resulting in one of the most popular Indian music videos to date. In 1995, Mani and Rahman made the album for 'Bombay'. The song 'Uyire' sung by Hariharan remains one of the most popular single tracks in Indian film history, and at the same time, 'Bombay''s theme music, which appears at the beginning of the film, was repeatedly syndicated and was even used as a track in the 2005 Nicolas Cage starrer 'Lord of War', a decade after it was composed. Shortly after that, inspired by a slew of other musical extavagant hits, Rahman marked his Bollywood debut in the film 'Rangeela' in 1997, which is also immensely popular. Rahman also proved his versatility in delivering quality music even in different situations when his score for Mani's periodic film Iruvar in the same year won him rave reviews for creating adorabel music even though the film required Rahman to compose in tune with evergreen 1960s Indian songs.
A year later, Rahman completely became a true household name with his score for Mani's Bollywood debut 'Dil Se'. The song 'Chaiyya Chaiyya' became so popular that it baceme the most syndicated Indian music video in history, as the song was shot atop a moving train. It has been repeatedly voted as the most famous Indian music video in history, which also helped superstar Shah Rukh Khan gain more popularity, in addition with the fact that the song was used by acclaimed Hollywood director Spike Lee as the opening track of his 2006 film, 'Inside Man'. Since then, Rahman has repeatedly won acclaims both internationally and also in India. He did a Broadway musical called 'Bombay Dreams' under the production of Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber in 2001, and at the same year, he garnered considerable acclaim for his score in 'Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India', a film that came within touching distance of becoming the first Indian film to win an Oscar. The 2006 film 'Water', a Canadian-Indian entry that also missed the Oscar by a whisper, also has music by Rahman. Rahman also had composed for the 'Lord of the Rings musical' in Toronto, Canada. In 2005, Rahman won huge global acclaim again for composing in the Chinese film 'The Warriors of Heaven and Earth', with his theme tracks for the film becoming very popular.
Rahman has, to date, won three Indian National Awards, and multiple state Filmfare awards. He has also been honored with a 'Padma Shri' (India's fourth highest civilian honor, equivalent to a 'Datuk' in Malaysia), and is an United Nations goodwill ambassador. In 2007, he composed and sung for his album 'Pray for Me Brother', in which he wrote and sung about poverty, and the album was offcially affiliated as UN's banish poverty by 2015 campaign. In 2006 meanwhile, Rahman wrote and sung a song in dedication to the 'Taj Mahal' monument, and the song became a vital factor in Taj Mahal's inclusion as the seventh and final entry in the current Wonders of the World list. Rahman also composed for a jingle for the mobile service company 'Airtel', and his composition is now officially Airtel (which is India's most popular mobile service) ringtone.
Apart from all that, in 1997, Rahman composed and sung 'Maa Tujshe Salam', a patriotic song in tune with India's 50th year of independence celebrations. Believe it or not, the song has become so popular that it even replaced India's original 'Jana Gana Mana' national anthem in various public functions as a new anthem. In 2007, during Indian's 60th year anniversary, he re-composed the 'Jana Gana Mana' national anthem, again to huge reception. Rahman has millions of fans across the globe today, and there is a famous saying that goes like this- 'If Music is Religion, then AR Rahman is God'.
Rahman also composed in 2008 for the film 'Elizabeth: The Golden Age' and won rave reviews, followed by Danny Boyle's 'Slumdog Millionare', which finally, won him a Golden Globe award for best original score, the first ever Indian to do so.
Now Rahman is starring at strongly upon an Oscar nomination, but in his acceptance speech he thanked and dedicated the award to the 'billion people watching from India'.
So, are there any reasons not to like AR Rahman? I can't find one reason to dislike or even be neutral of him.
A man that the whole Indian Community SHOULD be immensely proud of.
Alla Rakha Rahman
Born January 6 1966
A Living Legend.
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