The interview which appears below, was originally published on The Indian Express in September 2005. ©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.
In person, A.R. Rahman is extremely god fearing, devoutly religious, and humble person. He is shy, soft-spoken, good-natured, and absolutely down-to-earth.
My very first face-to-face encounter with this globally renowned musical whiz kid had taken place outside Mumbai’s most famous Muslim Shrine, The Durgah Of Haji Ali.
A.R. Rahman says, “Since the time I have converted to Islam and I staunchly followed the tenets of the Islamic religion as prophesized by Prophet Mohammed, I have always made it a point to visit the Haji Ali Durgah every Thursday and offer my floral respects. In fact, I follow this ritual in every city that I visit, whether in India or abroad. So the first thing whenever I enter any city is to visit the Durgah of that particular city.”
What made you change your name to Allah Rakha Rahman from your original name Dilip Shekhar?
A.R. Rahman: “No particular reasons whatsoever. Since I had decided to embrace Islam out of my own choice, I felt it was appropriate to change my name too.”
Do you also religiously and regularly follow the tenets of the Islamic religion?
Yes, I do. I do offer Namaz, I do observe Rozas in the holy month of Ramzan, I do give Zakat and Fitra to the needy people. Besides, I do intend to perform my Haj & Umrah at the holy city of Mecca & Madina.
I fell in love with the basic principles of the Islamic religion. I really loved the name Allah, especially Allah Rakha, which means protected by God as His favorite child, and hence I decided to re-christen myself as Allah Rakha Rahman.
