The ' Ravan ' Rahman Rakes ...

While his global appeal grows by the day, Rahman continues to add to his Bollywood repertoire, the latest being Mani Ratnam’s Raavan. CT gets talking to the Mozart of Madras on the album...
ASHA BHONSLE’S SONG WASN’T USED...
While everyone gushed about Raavan’s music launch with Rahman and Gulzar, Sonu Niigaam tweeted about his song missing from the album. Rahman said, “Unfortunately, because of the narration, we couldn’t fit many songs. We have three more songs that we recorded, but couldn’t use. We had a song with Asha Bhonsle too that wasn’t used. The movie’s narration would’ve halted with so many songs. So, we took a creative decision.”
I WANT TO WORK WITH MANI RATNAM... ALWAYS
Since Roja, Rahman’s been associated with every Ratnam project. And, the camaraderie is “precious” to him. He says, “He doesn’t do three movies in two years, but one in two years. Which means, in about 20 years, he’s done about 10 movies. That translates into a great working opportunity with him. I want to do projects with him. The process excites us both; it’s engaging.”
MANI WANTS ME TO SING
Rahman also sang a number for the flick. But, doesn’t he usually sing a song in all the movies that he does? “Not necessarily. Sometimes, Mani wants me to sing. In fact, he was one of the first persons who asked me to sing.”
YOU LEARN TO COMPARTMENTALISE
Since he works with international artistes like Usher and then comes back to Bollywood, does he ever feel disconnected? “No. When I work there, I feel excited. When I work here, I feel excited. After a while, you learn to compartmentalise and use all the inputs to create a new kind of product. As long as I create music anywhere, I’m in great spirits.”
I TOOK A BREAK FOR A YEAR, WHILE BAGGING AWARDS FOR SLUMDOG...
What happens when you don’t feel like creating music? “I take a break,” he says. So, when did he last take a break? “I took a break for almost a year in 2009... when I was collecting awards for Slumdog Millionaire!”
SLUMDOG..., A TURNING POINT
As the movie got him international recognition, was Slumdog... the turning point of his life? He says that it was one of the turning points. So, which one was the most important? “The most important one was in the ’90s, when Roja released. My life took a 180-degree turn. My direction turned towards spirituality; it became more Sufi. Everything sort of aligned itself in the same direction.”
IF POSSIBLE, I’D VISIT A DARGAH EVERY DAY
Does Rahman always visit a dargah before embarking on a big project? Says he, “I try to. If possible, I would visit a dargah every day. There’s so much spiritual energy. It helps me.”
CHOOSE LOVE
Besides his spirituality, what else makes him tick? “Choosing love. It’s what I’d said in my Oscar speech. Choose love — all my life I had a choice between hate and love, and I chose love.”

Courtesy - Times Of India

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