Great Interview. Who did the interview? Srinivasan (I forget his first name) or someone else?
Warm Regards ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Vinayak On Sun, Aug 10, 2008 at 9:55 AM, Vithur <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Unstoppable Indians in NDTV There was a show in NDTV profit some days > back, in which ARR was interviewed. Pls find the link for the interview > > > http://www.ndtv.com/convergence/ndtv/videopod/default.aspx?id=26595 > The Extract!!! A R Rahman- the Mozart of Madras. His music is both > personal and universal. It's distinctive. Even when he draws from older > forms he transforms it into something entirely new. By most estimates he is > the best selling recording artist in the world. A R Rahman - thank you very > much for joining us on The Unstoppable Indians. > > NDTV: When people like me use descriptions like the Mozart of Madras - do > you cringe? > > A R Rahman: Yes. It's become a habit now - listening to that - oh my god - > no way. > > NDTV: But you know it's also catchy with Madras. But tell me - you know at > least something like - probably the best selling recording artist in the > world - I mean that is something tangible - that we can all feel and touch. > That must give you some satisfaction. > A R Rahman: It's good because India's got 1.4 billion people. And what's > good is in the 90s when I started as a Tamil film composer on Roja and then > I never knew that it's going to be dubbed in different languages - and then > that success kind of led into Bombay. And all Mani Ratnam movies. And > Shankar movies. And you know Rangeela. So I think it became like a pattern > where the music covered almost all the people of India. > > NDTV: And that's something I want to flesh out in greater detail with you > in just a moment - about how your music for starters united every part of > India. But tell me is there one description - or a description of yourself > that you would like to give me so that the next time around when I am > introducing A R Rahman I know I've got it right. > A R Rahman: I don't know. When I started I was very frustrated. I was > playing for a lot of composers and stuff. I said why can't we hear this kind > of stuff. Why can't we - why can't they do this - this 'they' became why > can't 'I' do this. Because I had an opportunity to do that and I discussed > with the directors so much. I said I want to do this. Otherwise I don't want > to do this film. Then he said - ya of course - I would love for you to do > that - if you can pull it off. And that's the way it started - like good > poetry, good lyrics, extraordinary presentation and the aspiration for that > music to reach all over the world. It was big at that time but now I feel > good that we had aspired for that. > > NDTV: Well I am going to remember that description - good lyrics, good > poetry, music that the world can identify with. We are here in Chennai and > you know it's where it all began. And I want to go back right to the > beginning. You were born in a family that loved music. Your father - a > musician himself - was he a pretty big influence? > > A R Rahman: He was. Ya. Still is. I think he was very hard working and he > would never say no to good work. He used to assist people. He used to do his > own work. And he kind of immersed himself in music - fully - throughout. > Without saying that I need to take a break - I need to go with my family - > nothing - music was everything for him. When I lost him, something inside me > told me that people only need you till you are what you are. Then I realised > that I had to keep some time for myself to rejuvenate, to fill me up with > other things like spirituality and stuff. So it kind of complements my > music. Music comes from different things, not necessarily from within music > itself. > > NDTV: I want to ask you if this is true. I believe your father had 3 LPs. > One from China, one from Latin America and one American country ballad. And > you know when we are talking sitting here now of the universality of AR > Rahman's music - do you think you can trace that universal quality back to > that first exposure? > > A R Rahman: Ya I think so, because when I used to listen to the radio at > that time and these records were like for me the window to the outside world > - I said what is this? Why is he having this record? And who are these > people? There was a black American. I think it's a Miles Davis recording > playing trumpet and I was so fascinated by that. Though I couldn't > understand a thing but probably all those things became a foundation for my > understanding through other kinds of music later. > > NDTV: You lost him when you were young - you were 9. And you started > working at a very young age. Touring with Zakir Hussain as well. What was > that experience like? > > A R Rahman: It was a very brief tour. I think my first probably the world > kind of exposure came with that group - L Shankar, Zakir and his wife and > all that stuff. And what was good about that was that the whole outlook of > music - they were looking at music in a different way than film music. I > said why can't film music be like this. So the question of making film music > into an exciting form of music came from all those experiences. > > NDTV: You know I am trying to put all of the influences on A R Rahman into > perspective here. One is of course your father. The second is people that > you interacted with. And you also chose to study music at Oxford. Did that > study introduce a kind of discipline? Was that exposure a whole new window? > A R Rahman: Well the study was mainly done in Chennai. The syllabus was > here and I got trained in music by Jacob John - one of the masters who > completely changed me. When I thought I could never do music - he said - No > - you have music in you. And you can take it further. And I really owe it to > him. I met him actually four years back in Liverpool when he was fighting > with cancer. And he said seeing you I want to live for another ten years. > And I started crying at that time. And in fact that's one of the reasons > which has inspired me to start a conservatory here. A music conservatory for > our own people to learn western classical because that's always been looked > upon as another culture. I don't think it's another culture. Its within us > already and its become part of our culture. It's just the infrastructure > there. You can play music in an organised way. And to create a harmony with > 100 odd people. > > NDTV: And that's what is taking up some of your time and energy now - the > music conservatory. > > A R Rahman: Ya. I think it's worth it. It's worth to do that right now and > to take it further. > > NDTV: You know, in a sense adversity shapes all people but do you think > that your tough growing up years put a certain kind of go-getter spirit in > you? > > A R Rahman: 25-26 ya. > > NDTV: 25-26. Tell me that first thought - was it - oh my god - can I do > this? > > A R Rahman: That was there of course but I always thought I was not ready. > Even now I think like that. But first he asked me for some tunes and I gave > it to him. And there was no feedback for 3 days. I said ok now he hates > everything. Let's go back to jingles again. But then he came back again and > said I like this - I like that. So I said - strange - he likes something of > mine. But after the first film I thought I could never compose again because > I had given all that I knew. And then something came up and then there were > ways to explore into music. And then you discover. But that happens every > year. That happens in every album. I said after this what am I going to do. > Then something keeps coming up. And also the good thing about films is you > have a team and sometimes you mix with - like you know chemicals when they > are mixed with another chemical it becomes another product totally. It's > like that, and you work with different other people the whole music becomes > different. > > NDTV: Has there been one film - because there have been so many since Roja > and I am not going to list all of them. We all know them. We love the music. > Has there been one film where it gave you a complete sense of well being - a > complete sense of satisfaction. > > A R Rahman: I think recently I would say Jodha Akbar because we worked > really hard on it. It was tough. We had such a tough film like Mughal-e-Azam > standing in front of us and saying I am here. And we took a completely > different direction and that helped. I am glad that people are loving it > now. > > NDTV: And your western sort of journeys and you know Lord of The Rings also > comes to mind. There was a certain amount of hesitation before you took that > project on? > > A R Rahman: That was actually just because I was very busy at that time. > And I believe that spending enough time is necessary for a project. But once > I got into it I discovered so many things in music. I discovered so many > things of in-depth travelling into music. And that whole team was really > inspired. And I have learnt so much that now whatever I do in future I think > it's going to change completely from the other path that I have taken - in a > good way. > > NDTV: Do you think that it also posed the challenge of creating an almost - > the word 'distinctive' is used very loosely - but you know the challenge > with Lord of The Rings must have been that .... > > A R Rahman: See, you have to cater to that rather than - like a Bombay > Dreams was a sort of - like picking up pearls and making a garland out of > what is existing. Here you have to make that pearl for that particular > thing. And it has to be focussed, and it has to be musically correct and > exciting and blah blah blah. So that was the first time I was challenged to > do that. And though I was a co-composer for that. But still I think a great > deal did go into that. > > NDTV: Does your commitment to films and there must be many seeking your > commitment - ever raise the question in your mind - am I committing myself > too much? Is this going to hurt my musical ingenuity? > > A R Rahman: In my case the more chaotic I work the more better it is but of > course all the deadlines go haywire. But musically what happens is - it's > like, you know, playing pool. You hit one ball and other so many balls move. > So it's like you go into one focus of music and sometimes it doesn't focus > there and it gives something else. The brain is always rebellious. You know > you want to do something - it says something else. So I keep my brain open. > When I am sitting for Subhash Ghai I might get a Raykesh Mehra tune. When I > am sitting for Ashutosh I might get an English tune. So I can never say > compose for Ashutosh today or compose for The Lord of The Rings today. I can > never say that. > > NDTV: Because you don't know. stop it. Something else is coming so let me > get it. So that happens always. > > NDTV: And of course you choose to work in the stillness of the night. The > day is not conducive to.... > > A R Rahman: Ya it's a habit which I think is a good habit but a lot of > people think it's a bad habit. > > NDTV: When did that habit start? > > A R Rahman: It started when I worked for the films from morning 9 to the > evening 9 'o' clock and then I used to do my own commercials which was my > creative work. So all my creative work was done in the night. And the stuff > I was playing - doing outside was during the day. So my mind got tuned. Ok > in the night you have to start creating. In the day you work for other > people. > > NDTV: And you can't actually define whether it's been a good night's work > or can you? How do you say - today I've had a great night? I mean is there a > certain body - a certain volume of work or just a certain - hitting the > right note? > > A R Rahman: Yes I think mostly - it's not that when I sit in the night I > get a tune or something. Sometimes I get a tune even while going in the car > or travelling by flight or whatever. But what I get is a kind of - as you > said - a stillness and I think the night is very special for me. I said > that. It all comes together. And there is no adversity. > > NDTV: I am sure there are nights when it doesn't all come together. When > that block faces you. Does that block ever face you and how do you cope with > it? > > A R Rahman: I think anxiety sometimes. When I finish a concert or something > it takes a while for me to unwind because the excitement and the energy > level of a concert is so high that I can't suddenly go into the ease of > vacuum to create a tune. So that's a time I find that - or when I travel a > long distance - completely exhausted. > > NDTV: We talked briefly of your inspiration and spirituality is a > cornerstone of your music. But you know when we hear your music - I mean > it's a confluence of reggae and pop and folk and it all sort of comes > together. So what I'm actually asking you is - how do you keep track of all > the music that is out there in the world? How do you get the time to absorb > it? > > A R Rahman: I try to embrace everything - as a listener too. I don't > listen to heavy metal. I don't listen to reggae. I don't listen to jazz. I > see what is good in that music and the essence of that music. And if you > study it, then you'll be able to do it. You have to keep the essence of the > music alive in a remix. A lot of people don't like remix. But I think it's > an art. It's an art and I think people should do it with the permission of > the original composer. If you just - if that guy is alive and then you take > his songs and rip it apart - if he doesn't like it - that's not good - it's > like murder. So I believe in that. So when you - when there is a future and > when things come up new in the future - you can't say that's not good. What > is old is good. That's not growth. Growth is something, which brings along > some good even in the future. There is growth in everything. If you start > looking at it - then you can do it. > > NDTV: You know one gets a sense that at one level A R Rahman has possibly > everything that he could have hoped to achieve? > > A R Rahman: In what? > > NDTV: In music. > > A R Rahman: Well for me - for me the bar I have drawn is somewhere else > actually. It's not film music alone. If you look at film music there is a > limitation of what you can deliver to a film. You can't go beyond something. > Because they don't need that. They just need that - if it's 50 per cent- > they need that 50 per cent. You don't need to go to 100 per cent. Sometimes > you go beyond it and then it doesn't fit the film. But even though then for > certain sound tracks I do that and keep it. Whether they use it or not. So > that's one thing we can look at in future. That music exists outside film > too. Right now it's both complementing each other. Which is good. But there > should be stuff - like how classical music exists. > > NDTV: So music that grows beyond films? > > A R Rahman: That's probably my direction for my label. And though it's very > difficult for me I am going to try and do it. > > NDTV: This is a very trite thing to request of you but is there a piece of > music that you would share with us that describes where you are right now? > Or your philosophy? > > A R Rahman: Or my philosophy. I could probably say - "Khwaja mere khwaja". > > NDTV: Will you sing it for us - a bit? > > A R Rahman: With my bad voice? Let me see. > > "Khwaja mere khwaja. Dil me samaja. Shahon ki shatush. Ali ka dulara. > Khwaja mere khwaja. Dil me samaje. Bekasoor ki takdeer too ne hain savaree. > Too ne hain savaree. Bekasoor ki takdeer too ne hain savaree." > > I've got a bad throat actually. > > NDTV: AR Rahman thank you so much for joining us on The Unstoppable > Indians. Indeed you are The Unstoppable Indian. > > A R Rahman: Thank you. > > > COURTESY :- MALAVARAYAN - ORKUT > -- > regards, > Vithur > > ARR -- The Sweet Cube always > >
