what does A R Rahman mean to you?

In a music industry where duo sisters ruled the roost followed by Alka and others it is Rahman who would give a song to any new comer, he can easily use a new voice, It may not be perfect on sur/pitch or range but Rahman makes it acceptable and the song strikes a great chord with people like aye bachchu, behka mai behka. So isn't he promoting besura singers. No wait a minute when the situation needs he would go for a perfect sur like aaja balam in Yuvraaj (title theme) or radha kaise me jale on raag bhimpalasi in Lagaan or ghanan ghanan on raag Kafi in Lagaan, so he knows his music very well. His orchestration is heavy and muliti layered and that is why it takes a while for his songs to grow over you.

Just to add few things more. ARR is a thinking, innovative and evolving composer all the time. His Hindi songs in 90s had strong influence of Carnatic classical but then when one listens to RDB song or Mangal Pandey's tumhari adao pe mai wari wari (raag darbari) ot title theme one can easily identify these with freedom fight in North Indian backdrop. Another thing very unique about him is he is not afraid of using modern instruments in a song based on old story like in Shaheed Bhagat Singh songs he has used both matka and synthesizer (mahi ve) and extensive keyboarding in desh mere in same film, similarly in tumhari adao pe mai wari wari he would easily use heavy bass drones which otherwise a conservative composer wouldn't.

In ye jo des hai tera (swades) he has used Sehahnai and drums in same breath, he would use software in a song like jage haain to create sound of santur and get away no one minds and ARR establishes a trend this way.

Another thing is his editing, mixing and recording technique, It is said in Roja he recorded the same thing over and over so that even those buying cassettes get audio quality of CD. He has largest collection of softwares and instruments, he often arranges instruments for his players. When he asks a player to paly a dhun it is recorded and then it is kept as bank to be used at appropriate time, if it is used in a song , the gyu gets moneya and thank title on a cassette or CD cover. No one ever did this for any instrumentalist till date in Bollywood hence he is immensely popular with players. This is why names like Kuttu and Shivamani are house hold thee days.

He keeps abreats of latest develpment in world music and the effect is there to see. He used MIA to do rap lyrics in O Saya. Similarly he has used a black rapper for BGS of lord of rings. He has changed his keyboards to over 20 times in last 15 years and makes sure he uses the best modes and sounds. He has a large collectioin of audio sample from several sources (remember killer rhythm of aiyo aiyo o from Rangeela? that is audio sample..!) and he himself has created large number of samples for every one to use.

And about humiliy kya kahne, if there was a oscar for humility it would go to A R Rahman for suree.

Now when I read in ET that he would devote 50% time to Hollywood somewhere I know we will miss him in Indian music be it Tamil or Hindi but then he is an international composer, thanks ARR for making country proud...!I Salute you from bottom of my heart.

'He Liberated The Film Song'
He changed the age old format of the film song-- the asthayi and the antara and then a cross
line to match the asthayi -- that has been our format since the inception of film music

GULZAR ON A.R. RAHMAN

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When Rahman entered the Tamil and Telugu film industry I do not know how it affected them, but
when he came to Hindi films with Roja his entry was noticed and much talked about. Detractors
started saying, "He's repetitive" etcetera, but Rahman quietly continued doing his work and
they fell silent and his music grew on them.

Here people take a lot of time in accepting anything new. That's a peculiar quality we seem to
have. He used folk and classical and blended it beautifully. He used western sounds and
electronics and used them in Hindi music and they didn't sound foreign at all. He blended them
so well into our music..

For the lyricists, he made a very important contribution. He changed the age old format of the
film song-- the asthayi and the antara and then a cross line to match the asthayi -- that has
been our format since the inception of film music. Rahman let it go and I for one felt greatly
elated because I have always used blank verse and I was very comfortable with this form. He
liberated the film song from the earlier shackles. I had used this kind of writing earlier in
songs like meraa kuchh saamaan tumhaare paas paRaa hai etc but his coming made it acceptable.

In our music today, Rahman's presence has made a whole lot of difference. What else can we ask
for? Not only in India, he has opened up the horizon in the west also. It needs courage to
experiment the way he does. His Bombay Dreams was an experiment which succeeded beautifully.

He is totally obsessed with work and, whatever the platform, he enjoys trying new things.
That's how he has reached a level where he hasn't lifted one but two Oscars. When he lifted
one, he lifted two!

I must add that in the Jai Ho song which won the other Oscar, there was a magic voice whose
contribution cannot be missed -- that of Sukhwinder Singh. There have been times when the
singer and the lyricist have won awards and the composer has not but that doesn't lessen the
role of the composer.

Rahman is this era.

Jai Ho

As told to Lata Khubchandani

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IN THIS STORY:

Sukhwinder Singh
'One time, one job'. This is something I have learnt from Rahman.

Pyarelal
I don't think he's outstanding.

Prasoon Joshi
He has a way of breaking the meter, it gets freshness into the song.

Sivamani
'For him, every song is an Oscar or a Grammy'

Shankar Mahadevan
What RD Burman did in the 70s, Rahamn came and did in the late 80s.

Mahalxmi Iyer
With his first album he revolutionized the sound, the style and the content of Indian film
music for the future, all at once.

Sonu Nigam
His honesty has given his music a certain ingenuity, a certain simplicity. And the better the
talent, the more I see God influencing the work.

Shantanu Moitra
He himself is a technician, so he actually works with textures of voices. Rahman's mixing
really stands out -- be it on a transistor or a hi-fi system.

Anu Malik
When I first heard Choti Si Aasha it was mindboggling -- a composer was born to my mind.

Vishal
Of Vishal-Shekhar: If even his average work can get him on a global platform and fetch him two
Oscars, just imagine what would Dil Se deserve … at least six!

Salim
Of the Salim-Suleiman duo: Rahman has done for film music what Ravi Shankar or Zakir Hussain
have done for classical music or Zubin Mehta for Western classical music.

Harshdeep
Whenever Rahman listens to somebody, the voice registers in his mind and when he has a song fit
for that voice, he calls you

Kavita Paudwal
To him, a voice is also another sound--a wonderful sound to which he gives due prominence

Madhushree
He is always searching. He's very creative. He wants to work with new people, make new sounds,
do new things

Shaan
He refused to shift to Mumbai, stayed in Chennai, recorded in his own way. That aura as a
composer works for him.

Mohit Chauhan
There are silences, spaces in his music. His music borders on spirituality.

Chinmayi Sripada
His music is all about the magic of sound. It has divinity; you connect at an emotional level.

Benny Dayal
He plays with the texture of the voice but lets the singer be. Recording is more impromptu than
rehearsed.

Anil Srinivasan
Illaiyaraja is brilliant but he is more about music while Rahman is all about sound.

Kailash Kher
Like new recipes of food, he keeps trying out new voices, has an innovative mind and is
constantly experimenting.

Srinivas Bhashyam
He bridged the North-South divide. He has been a patriotic, not regionalistic person. He sees
India as one entity.

Shaleen Sharma
He doesn't make music into a khichdi. He understands silences, the dynamics of the song.

Naresh Iyer
Everyone talks about how his music is all technology but crucial thing is how he uses it, gets
the best out of it.

Khayyam
Convey my congratulations to him.

Indradhanush: you are evidently a very knowledgeable guy. I enjoy most of your posts except those where you bash the Western world.

Over the years, a lot of people, big and small, have said a lot of nice things about Rahman. I am attaching a recent note from Lata Mangeshkar, one of India's best. She says, "I wish him an Oscar award every year. He is an amazing musician and there are no words to express the feeling I am going through right now. I wish him a lot of happiness, fortune and everything he asks for. He gives so much of space to every singer that everyone enjoys a lot while working with him. He mixes Hindustani music with South Indian music so well that it gives an amazing effect to the listener. Another important aspect about his music is that he understands background of every film very well and then he gives music accordingly. I am very impressed with him and I am waiting for him to come back so that I can extend my greetings to him in person. I am extremely happy. He has taken Indian music to this international level and so he deserves every music award for it."

But whatever you said about Rehman is so true and its very pleasing to see it coming from a person like you😃