The interview which appears below, was originally published on The Madras Plus in February 2006. ©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.
Imagine cooking in your kitchen or reading your newspaper and listening to a well-modulated, baritone voice, some good music, and living legend A.R. Rahman himself in conversation. R J Niladri Bose, well-known for his deep voice, caught up with A.R. Rahman last Saturday. ET Madras Plus listens in and brings its readers a sneak peek.
Thank you for being on this show. My first question is more like the last question of an interview. What are your forthcoming releases in 2006?
There are a lot of releases. In Tamil, we have Shivaji, Dasavatharam, and Jill Endru Oru Kadhal. In Hindi, we have a film called London Dreams by Rajkumar Santhoshi and Rang De Basanti has just been released. Apart from that, Lord of the Rings is releasing in March. So I guess one by one they will fall into place.
Well, a lot to look forward to from you, and I’m sure all your fans have a musical treat in store for them. Why are you considered a media-shy person?
I’m not a media-shy person, after a point in time what can we say? We repeat the same thing. You know, there are so many radio stations and magazines that when you say the same thing time and again, you feel kind of shallow. It’s better to hold on and allow your work to show and speak loud and clear…(laughs).
Well, let the music do the talking, legendary words from the man himself…If you weren’t a musician, what would you want to be?
I don’t know (laughs).
Well, we get it that you only want to be a musician and a legend at that. But tell me Rahman, any film in particular that you enjoyed working on?
I think working with certain directors is a more satisfying experience than the others, the whole team and the entire effort is concentrated and then it reaches people the way we conceive the music to be. Sometimes, it’s a one-sided effort, so I think most of the big hits that people have liked, have remained a collaborative and collective effort.
Your day must be a 24-hour one. Do you get time at all to do normal things like say going to a store, catching a movie, or just hanging out with family?
Sometimes, surprisingly, there is a lot of time. It’s not planned, but then suddenly I do call my family and say, “Let’s go, the computer has crashed (laughs) and we have four hours at hand.” So, I do make time for them now and then and that’s fun actually.
Only when the computer crashes does Rahman get his free time. We know we have taken a lot of your time, but one final question. Any message to aspiring musicians or singers who want to make it big on the silver screen?
Each person has their own destiny and their own hard work pays. Try to find what’s within you and bring out the best, rather than trying to be another person. You have to spot that first and then bring it out in the most brilliant way with all your heart in it.
I’ve been waiting to ask you this question Rahman, not just me but probably the whole country. Can we expect a solo album in the future?
Yeah, I’d love to do a solo album, but my commitments are holding me back.
