‘ SOME OF THE LYRICS IN A FEW SONGS ARE MINE’

MAESTRO A. R. RAHMAN CHATS ABOUT THE BENEFITS OF TECHNOLOGY, COMPOSING ON THE FLY, WRITING LYRICS FOR HIS SONGS AND MUCH MORE

The name A. R. Rahman hardly needs an introduction. From the innocence of Dil Hai Chota Sa and the soaring patriotism he evoked with Maa Tujhe Salaam, to Jai Ho which bagged him his Oscar and the gritty rock and roll that he churned out with McJagger in Superheavy, there is no genre that the artiste has left untouched. The ever- curious Rahman, had recently took to the role of director with a virtual reality film Le Musk, Cutting an unassuming figure, Rahman patiently and precisely answers a barrage of questions asked by us. Despite being someone who spends hours upon hours perfecting songs at the studio, the artiste said that there is a different thrill to perform for a new audience every time. “Each city is differe n t . Sometimes, for a certain song, we’ll get so much ovation. What we expect doesn’t happen and what we don’t expect does. It comes as a good surprise,” he explains. Dividing time between live performances and studio hours is not an easy balance to keep and the composer often finds himself sketching out melodies on the go. The peace and technical gear of a studio, however, is definitely the preferred set- up for Rahman. “To sketch something is easy when you’re on the go, at a hotel. But to sit sown and arrange things, I’d always prefer a studio. And of course every city has a studio where I can go — Mumbai or Chennai,” he says. “This ( his latest in Mumbai) tour is not like how we did it a couple of years back when we had a couple of concerts every week. Since they’re bigger concerts, a lot of organising goes into it. So I have enough time to go back to the studio.”

Though he never shirks from trying on new roles, whether in the world of music or cinema, Rahman has officially written very few songs. With the story of 99 Hours already under his belt, would he consider writing some of his own lyrics, we ask. “I already do a couple of things anonymously,” he says, with a laugh. “Some of the lyrics in a few songs are mine, unofficially. I think because I got to work with so many greats — Vairamuthu, in Tamil, Javed Akhtarsaab, Majrooh Sultanpuri

saab, Gulzarsaab — sometimes the way they think sticks to you and you start writing lines.”

Rahman, unlike many composers of his time, has evolved with the times — tailoring his music to fit the era and the technical advances. Technology, he says, should be explored. “If we ignore any progress and say, yeah, that’s not for me, then finally it ( progress) will ignore you. So we have to see what is there and then, if it’s not good, you just throw it away. If it’s good, you can use it; you can conquer it,” he says, philosophically.

Perhaps it is this philosophy that led the artiste to the world of virtual reality and his film Le Musk. From a vague idea formed from a conversation with his wife, the film has taken shape to become the first Indian fulllength feature using the medium. “I have been fascinated with cameras for the past six years and then I was talking to my wife one day. She’s a big fan of perfumes and she can recognise any perfume. So, she told me, you’ve made 99 Songs, why don’t you do a movie on perfumes? So, on the fly, I was trying to figure out the story, about the little girl and other elements. And it became a reality when I first saw the virtual reality gear. Everyone told me that the idea’s great and everything fell into place. So, now, we have finished shooting, we’ve cut the almost two episodes and one more is still remaining,” he recalls.

As someone composing in an era of ever advancing technology, however, Rahman has not forgotten his roots, even as he looks to take his music soaring to new technical heights. “Once you become a musician, it’s all about harmony, melody and textures. The rest is all fine, as additions. If you have a movie, you can expand it to surround sound. And headphones can take it to a whole other level, with virtual reality, you can have alphasonic sound — the possibilities are endless,” he signs off.

The music composer says that his sense of poetry comes from working with greats like Gulzaar, Javed Akhtar and Vairamuthu If we ignore any progress and say, yeah, that’s not for me, then finally it ( progress) will ignore you