In a new interview to Hindustan Times published in today's Mumbai edition
Read interview here
http://www.flickr.com/photos/arrahmanfans/2049191814/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/arrahmanfans/2048404561/
The text below has the formatting messed up:
‘I HAVEN\'T COME ACROSS ANY NEW SINGER WHO IS ABOVE AVERAGE\'
If I say I like my music, I'll be blowing my own trumpet. And if I say I don't
like my music, I'll sound disgruntled
Whatever happened to your unruly locks? When I went for Haj, I shaved off my
long hair. Fortunately or unfortunately, my wife liked my new look.. she
insisted that I should keep it. (Laughs) I had no other alternative but to
listen to my wife. Does your style of composing music change when you do an
international project like Elizabeth: The Golden Age? The music for Elizabeth..
has been co-composed by me. When Shekhar started the project, he wanted to make
it very artistic and dark. But then, he decided to make the film more
entertaining.. and the music more pulsating.
As a composer, I'd say music stems from one's emotions. So, there's absolutely
no difference in my approach, whether I'm composing for Jodhaa Akbar or
Elizabeth. When you look back, how do you assess your music? Roja set the
standard for me as a composer. And frankly, I can't guage where to go after
Elizabeth. Let's see.. at this very point of time, I'm very excited about my
next international album - The Lord of The Rings which will be released on
December 10. It has many as 15 tracks. As much as 20000 pounds would be spent a
day on the orchestration. I believe you have started your own music company.
Yes. It's called K M Musiq. I'm really kicked about it. All these years, I was
being commissioned by others.. now I can commission others. But it seems you
now insist on royalty foreverymusicscore..whichiswhyyou couldn't compose for Om
Shanti Om. In life, you can't have your cake and eat it too. You have to take
certain risks to reach your goal. Which have
been your most vital steps ahead? Undoubtedly Vande Mataram and , the score
for the stage musical Bombay Dreams. What do you find wrong with the Indian
film music industry? There are several problems. The saddest thing is that no
one takes acoustic instruments seriously. Most musicians just prefer to work on
keyboards. But I've stopped getting angry One should .
be true to one's own self.. because one candle can light a million. Do you
still work like an owl all night and sleep by day? That's rubbish! If that was
true, I wouldn't be sitting here with you doing an inteview in the afternoon. I
work at night, occasionally , whenever I'm dealing with a jet lag situation,
not otherwise. How busy are you as a music director right now? I'm into a
somewhat more relaxed pace now. There was a time when I'd be doing six Tamil
and two to three Hindi films a year. How many Tamil films are you working on at
this point of time? (Laughs) Ha! That's a good question. I wish I knew the
answer. I'm doing two Tamil films – Sultan, the animation film being made by
Rajnikant's daughter Soundarya and Prabhu's Sakkarakkatti. And Hindi films?
Well, let me see. Gajini, Ada, Jaane Tu Naa Jaane Naa, Delhi 6, the Hindi
dubbed version of the Rajnikant movie Sivaji, Subhash Ghai's Main Hoon Yuvraj
and Ashutosh Gowariker's Jodhaa Akbar. You
were against the idea of composing for dubbed films. So, how did you make an
exception for Sivaji? You're right there.I don't encourage the dubbing of my
songs in other languages. Yes, so Sivaji is an exception. It has beaty foot-tap
, ping music which should connect on an all-India level. You are often accused
of working for big production banners at the cost of small films. Sorry, that
isn't true at all. Otherwise, I wouldn't be doing Sakkarakkatti which is a
small film. Are you composing the music for an animation film called Cockroach
being planned by Shekhar Kapur? Yes. I'm excited about that. Animation films
allow your imagination to take flight. What do you like about your music?
That's a tricky question. If I say I like my music, I'll be blowing my own
trumpet. And if I say I don't like my music, I'll sound disgruntled. Some film
producers in the South have accused you of recruiting Hindi singers to do the
playback for your Tamil films at their
cost. I will gladly plead guilty of that. Because I don't believe in
parochialism. On the other hand, if I feel that a Tamil singer suits the need
of a Hindi film song, I'll take that route without thinking twice. Why have you
cut down on giving breaks to new singers of late? Let me make this very clear
-today, new singers aren't of much use. We need great new singers. I haven't
come across any new singer who's above average. How do you prevent yourself
from becoming complacent about your music? (Pause.. looks away) I was clear
right from the moment when I started out, some 16-17 years ago, as a beginner
called Dilip Shankar. I was clear that I'm just an instrument in the hands of
God. I believe that God up there controls me in whatever I am doing. If don't
work in accordance to what God ordains, then I'll be washed out. After
composing major hit songs for Aamir Khan in Rangeela, Lagaan and Rang De
Basanti, how come you haven't done his Taare Zameen
Par? Have you fallen out with him? Who says so? I am composing for his film
Gajini. Some people have unfairly jumped to the conclusion that Aamir and I've
had a fight because I haven't done Taare Zameen Par. The fact is that I was
committed to several other films when Aamir asked me to be a part of the
project. Finally, top of the head, can you pick your 10 best movie music
scores? It's very difficult to play favourites. Still.. I wouldn't hesitate to
pick my top 10: Roja, Rangeela, Bombay, Dil Se, Taal, Kandukonden Kandukonden,
Zubeidaa, Lagaan, Rang De Basanti and Guru.
