‘SRIDEVIJI TOLD ME, I WANT TO WORK WITH YOU. IT SEEMS PROPHETIC NOW’
Lasyapriya.Sundaram@timesgroup.com 16.04.2018
AR Rahman is a man of few words. That’s because he lets his music do all the talking. After winning the National Award in the the Best Music Direction and the Best Background Score categories for Kaatru Veliyidai and Mom respectively, the music maestro, in a conversation, spoke about why winning the National Award is still special though he has seduced music lovers across the world with his compositions. Excerpts...
AR Rahman
‘IN SOME FILMS, BACKGROUND MUSIC IS LIKE WALLPAPER, AND IN OTHERS, IT IS A CHARACTER’
This is your first National Film Award in the Best Background Score category and the fifth for Best Music Direction. What are your first thoughts on winning not one, but two awards?
I am really happy. I want to thank Mani Ratnamji (director of Kaatru Veliyidai) and the team of Mom — Srideviji, Boney Kapoorji (producer) and Ravi Udyawar (director).
You have scored the background music for Mom. How do you go about composing it, vis-a-vis creating the soundtrack of a film? Give us an insight into your process...
A film like Mom needed to be driven by music. Ravi and I had collaborated on a commercial long time ago and that too, had won a lot of awards. He knew exactly what he wanted for Mom, but left it to me for my interpretation. I got the idea to compose a song like Muafi Mushkil after I saw the film. In some films, background music is like wallpaper, and in others, it is a character. It needs to say things, which the film is not saying or wants to say. I have worked with Boneyji and we wanted to collaborate again. In fact, Srideviji flew down from Mumbai to Chennai and told me that I have to do Mom’s BGM. She also said, ‘I want to work with you’. It seems prophetic now. The BGM of Mom is also my wife’s favourite. When I was in Hollywood last month, she asked my agent there to listen to it. I was surprised, because she is not somebody who says or does anything like this. She screamed with joy when she heard that I had won the award for Mom.
Having won innumerable awards and accolades over the years, does the National Award still hold a special place in your heart?
The National Award is definitely special because it is awarded by our Government. The jury is credible and they select films, which have been sidelined by other awards. In a way, it feels good that the National Awards jury has recognised the hard work that went into Mom. It requires more exposure for the vision it comes with.
You have won the National Award for Best Music Direction for Roja (1992), Minsara Kanavu (1997), Lagaan (2001) and Kannathil Muthamittal (2002). What are your memories of composing for Kaatru Veliyidai, for which you have won your fifth National Award?
Whenever I work with Maniji, I feel grateful to him for introducing me to cinema. But, it also means that I am shouldering a huge responsibility. I give it a lot of energy. Maniji is open to unconventional ideas and has an open mind. Not everyone is like that. People want tried and tested things, but he encourages something unique. He also has an amazing sensibility as far as music for movies is concerned. He is a reservoir of ideas. You can throw any wild one at him and he will make it organic and usable. He is a great teammate and mentor for me. In his next, Chekka Chivantha Vaanam, he has yet again surprised us, and we have just finished composing the fifth song for the film.
Your fans and bloggers feel that Kaatru Veliyidai is the quintessential ARR OST. It boasts of varied genres like A capella, Rap, Folk, Tango and also ambient melody. Do you agree?
I don’t see it like that (laughs). It’s not intended in that manner, but if it happens, that’s good. The film required that kind of a soundscape. The story revolved around an Indian Air Force officer and I have not done such a film before. I have seen a bit of that life when I was perhaps 12 or 13; I would visit the army quarters and play music, as I was part of a show called Wonder Balloon on Doordarshan. So, it was nice to revisit my childhood. They are special people, because they fight for our country.
This film marked your 15th collaboration with Mani Ratnam. Do you reserve your best for him?
That would be belittling everybody else. I did Rockstar (2011) with Imtiaz Ali. I have had big hits with directors Shankar and Rajiv Menon as well. Each director gets something new out of me. It depends on what tunes of mine they accept. Having said that, there is no sense of insecurity when I work with Maniji. He doesn’t judge or gauge a person based on his success or failure. Others might not want to associate with you if three of your films flop, but he is not like that. He judges people on the basis of the importance they give to the art. That’s what I have learnt from him.
So, what’s next?
I have been working on the soundtrack of 99 Songs for almost four-five years. The final cut is almost ready and it will have close to 14-15 tracks. We have collaborated with international artistes as well for the soundtrack. There is also Le Musk. Both these films are making good progress.
You also have Shankar’s 2.0, starring Rajinikanth in your kitty. What can your fans look forward to in that film as far as your score is concerned?
BGM plays a huge role in that film; every reel is packed with music. It will be a one-of-a-kind experience. We are trying to do some unique and new things with regard to the 3D visuals being combined with sound.
AR RAHMAN
Lasyapriya.Sundaram@timesgroup.com 16.04.2018
AR Rahman is a man of few words. That’s because he lets his music do all the talking. After winning the National Award in the the Best Music Direction and the Best Background Score categories for Kaatru Veliyidai and Mom respectively, the music maestro, in a conversation, spoke about why winning the National Award is still special though he has seduced music lovers across the world with his compositions. Excerpts...
AR Rahman
‘IN SOME FILMS, BACKGROUND MUSIC IS LIKE WALLPAPER, AND IN OTHERS, IT IS A CHARACTER’
This is your first National Film Award in the Best Background Score category and the fifth for Best Music Direction. What are your first thoughts on winning not one, but two awards?
I am really happy. I want to thank Mani Ratnamji (director of Kaatru Veliyidai) and the team of Mom — Srideviji, Boney Kapoorji (producer) and Ravi Udyawar (director).
You have scored the background music for Mom. How do you go about composing it, vis-a-vis creating the soundtrack of a film? Give us an insight into your process...
A film like Mom needed to be driven by music. Ravi and I had collaborated on a commercial long time ago and that too, had won a lot of awards. He knew exactly what he wanted for Mom, but left it to me for my interpretation. I got the idea to compose a song like Muafi Mushkil after I saw the film. In some films, background music is like wallpaper, and in others, it is a character. It needs to say things, which the film is not saying or wants to say. I have worked with Boneyji and we wanted to collaborate again. In fact, Srideviji flew down from Mumbai to Chennai and told me that I have to do Mom’s BGM. She also said, ‘I want to work with you’. It seems prophetic now. The BGM of Mom is also my wife’s favourite. When I was in Hollywood last month, she asked my agent there to listen to it. I was surprised, because she is not somebody who says or does anything like this. She screamed with joy when she heard that I had won the award for Mom.
Having won innumerable awards and accolades over the years, does the National Award still hold a special place in your heart?
The National Award is definitely special because it is awarded by our Government. The jury is credible and they select films, which have been sidelined by other awards. In a way, it feels good that the National Awards jury has recognised the hard work that went into Mom. It requires more exposure for the vision it comes with.
You have won the National Award for Best Music Direction for Roja (1992), Minsara Kanavu (1997), Lagaan (2001) and Kannathil Muthamittal (2002). What are your memories of composing for Kaatru Veliyidai, for which you have won your fifth National Award?
Whenever I work with Maniji, I feel grateful to him for introducing me to cinema. But, it also means that I am shouldering a huge responsibility. I give it a lot of energy. Maniji is open to unconventional ideas and has an open mind. Not everyone is like that. People want tried and tested things, but he encourages something unique. He also has an amazing sensibility as far as music for movies is concerned. He is a reservoir of ideas. You can throw any wild one at him and he will make it organic and usable. He is a great teammate and mentor for me. In his next, Chekka Chivantha Vaanam, he has yet again surprised us, and we have just finished composing the fifth song for the film.
Your fans and bloggers feel that Kaatru Veliyidai is the quintessential ARR OST. It boasts of varied genres like A capella, Rap, Folk, Tango and also ambient melody. Do you agree?
I don’t see it like that (laughs). It’s not intended in that manner, but if it happens, that’s good. The film required that kind of a soundscape. The story revolved around an Indian Air Force officer and I have not done such a film before. I have seen a bit of that life when I was perhaps 12 or 13; I would visit the army quarters and play music, as I was part of a show called Wonder Balloon on Doordarshan. So, it was nice to revisit my childhood. They are special people, because they fight for our country.
This film marked your 15th collaboration with Mani Ratnam. Do you reserve your best for him?
That would be belittling everybody else. I did Rockstar (2011) with Imtiaz Ali. I have had big hits with directors Shankar and Rajiv Menon as well. Each director gets something new out of me. It depends on what tunes of mine they accept. Having said that, there is no sense of insecurity when I work with Maniji. He doesn’t judge or gauge a person based on his success or failure. Others might not want to associate with you if three of your films flop, but he is not like that. He judges people on the basis of the importance they give to the art. That’s what I have learnt from him.
So, what’s next?
I have been working on the soundtrack of 99 Songs for almost four-five years. The final cut is almost ready and it will have close to 14-15 tracks. We have collaborated with international artistes as well for the soundtrack. There is also Le Musk. Both these films are making good progress.
You also have Shankar’s 2.0, starring Rajinikanth in your kitty. What can your fans look forward to in that film as far as your score is concerned?
BGM plays a huge role in that film; every reel is packed with music. It will be a one-of-a-kind experience. We are trying to do some unique and new things with regard to the 3D visuals being combined with sound.
AR RAHMAN
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