The interview which appears below, was originally published on Screen in July 2001. ©The rights to this material are reserved to the owner. If you have any concerns or comments, please send an email to info@rahmaniac.com.
Diving into A.R. Rahman’s world of music creation, Alka Yagnik, a celebrated voice in the industry, shares her experiences of working closely with the maestro. Yagnik reveals how Rahman’s evolving process now accommodates artists better by offering flexible dates, a departure from his earlier practice of short-notice calls.
Despite Rahman’s lack of fluency in Hindi, Yagnik explains how this never hinders the learning process. With Rahman’s guidance—whether through humming, playing, or singing—the essence of each song is effectively communicated. Yagnik praises Rahman’s meticulous approach to recording, emphasizing his ability to capture the best version of a vocalist’s performance.
A.R. Rahman is giving you a lot of work nowadays.
I would have recorded much more with him if the dates could have been managed. He has nowadays begun to give me optional dates so that I can choose from them. Previously he would call me at short notice, and it was not possible to record with him.
Rahman does not know Hindi. How does he teach you the song?
Many times the song I am singing has been sung already in the Tamil version, so Rahman makes me hear it. And then he teaches the details by humming it out to me. Or by playing it out. Sometimes he sings out the words. His not understanding of Hindi does not cause any problems.
He records the voice with only the rhythm, and makes me sing the mukhda and every antara repeatedly, and then chooses the best. He understands every voice and he treats the voice very well later on.
