AR Rahman's Roja still audience favourite
24 Feb 2009, 0126 hrs IST, Amit Sharma, ET Bureau
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NEW DELHI: Two Oscars for his work in Slumdog Millionaire may have taken
AR Rahman's popularity to new heights, but the songs
<http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News-By-Industry/Media--Entertainment-/AR-Rahmans-Roja-still-audience-favourite/articleshow/4179899.cms#>he
composed for his 1992 debut film Roja remain the hot favourites with his
Indian fans.
A majority of respondents covered by a poll commissioned by ET rate Roja as
Rahman’s best film album, with Slumdog coming a close second. Dil Se (1997),
Taal (1998) and Bombay (1994) complete the list of the maestro’s top five
albums.
Conducted by market research agency Synovate, the five-city survey that
covered 257 music
lovers<http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News-By-Industry/Media--Entertainment-/AR-Rahmans-Roja-still-audience-favourite/articleshow/4179899.cms#>among
SEC A and A Plus consumers reveal that while a majority of the
respondents (86%) across metropolitan India (Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai
and Ahmedabad) agree that Rahman’s work in Slumdog is his best, the
composer’s work in Roja emerged their favourite when they were asked to name
his top three
films<http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News-By-Industry/Media--Entertainment-/AR-Rahmans-Roja-still-audience-favourite/articleshow/4179899.cms#>.
A sizeable chunk of the respondents in Kolkata (86%), Chennai (48%) and
Ahmedabad (44%) rated Roja as Rahman’s top album while it was the favourite
with 30% of those surveyed in Mumbai. The films Dil Se, Taal and Bombay
figured prominently among the favourites in Delhi, Kolkata and Ahmedabad.
Some leading industry figures also feel Slumdog may not be Rahman’s best
work to date. “The legacy of Rahman’s music makes it amply clear that he’s
capable of much better work than Slumdog Millionaire,” said lyricist Prasoon
Joshi. Composer Aadesh Srivastav agrees. “Slumdog Millionaire is not a
complete reflection of Rahman’s true genius. It’s mainly fusion music in a
foreign director’s film. There are other films where he has done better,” he
said.
Besides his two Oscars at the 81st Academy Awards, Rahman also has won four
national awards (the only music composer to have done so) and one British
Academy Award (also for Slumdog Millionaire). Apart from scoring music of
over100 Indian films, Rahman has also composed music for several
international projects such as Bombay Dreams (2002), a stage show; The Lord
of The Rings
(theatre<http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News-By-Industry/Media--Entertainment-/AR-Rahmans-Roja-still-audience-favourite/articleshow/4179899.cms#>produc-tion
in 2004) and Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007).
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News-By-Industry/Media--Entertainment-/AR-Rahmans-Roja-still-audience-favourite/articleshow/4179899.cms
--
regards,
Vithur
