Wow!! Beautiful Article Vithur!! Thanks for sharing. Kalyan K.
On Tue, Feb 2, 2010 at 2:47 PM, Vithur <[email protected]> wrote: > > > Success thro’ Excellence > An inspiring story of A R Rahman > > > http://shamimrafeek.blogspot.com/2009/03/ar-rahman-inspiring-story-of-success.html > > Few weeks back I wrote an article on M.S Dhoni and the lessons from his > unique leadership style. We have another role model who has mastered > excellence in his profession and brought the whole world under his feet - > The Music Legend - A.R Rahman. > > Is there any thing common in these two youth icons of our country ? > Yes,commitment to excellence is their DNA. Winning is their habit and they > always perform at ' WOW '! Aiming for perfection and winning the competitive > edge are the things for what they crave constantly and add them to their > attitude. The next thing is performance. During any moment of the day, their > performance is EXCELLENCE. Performance is their language and they understand > the language of result only. > > If you pick up any newspaper or see the web or watch the news these days, > chances are that you will find an interview of A.R.Rahman. He is all over > the place after his OSCAR achievement and he really deserves it! All of us > have been seeing videos of his arrival back to India and his press > conferences with excitement. > > Today, A.R. Rahman is one of the world's most successful musicians. With a > brand name like Rahman, movies rake in millions. But it isn't just Rahman's > exceptional enthusiasm that's so contagious, but also the quality and > success of the work he's churning out. The man has redefined contemporary > Indian music and has become an icon for millions all over the world. > > Like everyone, I have known him and his music right from the time 'Roja' > was released in 1992.. that's a good 17 years! Everyone speaks of his music, > and what he eats, sleeps, drinks and what he does when he is free and so on > so forth. But really, there are things much beyond that one needs to know > and learn from the legend that A.R.Rahman is. With so many people who speak > so high of him at all times, there are some things that are unsaid and > certain things that we so easily ignore about Rahman, that makes him stand > apart from the clutter. > > The musical genius that Rahman is, most of that comes from his being and > principles. Rahman's success presents some valuable tips to us which can be > applied to our professional lives and achieve our goals. And on that note, > with the little that I know of him, let me share some of the learnings from > A.R.Rahman. > > 1. Family - Respect your Parents > > It might be very easy to brush this fact aside, but the truth is Rahman has > always loved, respected and adored his parents. With his father R.K.Shekar > leaving for heavenly abode when Rahman was nine years old, Rahman's mother > Kareema Begum, gave Rahman a new ray of hope and fresh lease of life. She > painfully raised the family, and is one of the driving factors of why Rahman > is a legend today. > > Remember what he said when he received his first OSCAR award, " Mere paas > ma hai, which means I have nothing but I have a mother, so mother's here, > her blessings are there with me. I'm grateful for her to have come all the > way ". Which other music composer or for that matter which other > media/entertainment/corporate personality do we know who follows this > principle. How many of us will openly show our love and respect to our > parents like him. That makes him truly unique. > > 2. Belief - Be Spiritually inclined > > A.R.Rahman believes in god and spiritualism. Its not about the fact that he > follows Islam, and offers prayers 5 times a day…its much more than that. I > believe there is a huge difference between being religious and being > spiritual, of which the latter is what Rahman is made of. In a recent > interview Rahman revealed that, "Religion sounds vulgar these days, I am > more of a spiritual person. And I believe in being consistent with my > spirituality. As one grows in life, one realizes the magnitude of > spirituality. It is the most beautiful passion. It raises you above all the > negativities. For me and my music, spirituality is the most important > element and I don't think I can create the kind of music I do, if I don't > practice spirituality." > > Spirituality has not only made him connect to his music, but has also made > him connect to humanity. When he received his second OSCAR, he said " all my > life I had a choice of hate and love and I chose love and I am here, god > bless " . That's the powerful message of his spirituality! > > 3. Country First - Be Patriotic > > Though Rahman acknowledges his accomplishment, after receiving OSCARS he > quickly points out that this is a COLLECTIVE INDIAN VICTORY. He says, he is > more happy because this is the first OSCAR for an Indian work and the whole > country was waiting for this with bated breath and hence he wanted to get > it. He says, now all Indian artists will be looked upon with more respect as > we have shown what we are capable of. His patriotism is evident in all his > patriotic songs including the latest " Jai Ho ". The way he sings ' vande > mataram ' injects some kind of positive energy into our blood stream ! > > 4. Roots - Don't leave your Soul > > Mumbai the mecca of Indian films and the entertainment industry, a place > where any and every musician will find a way out to survive and earn enough > to feed him for the day. It would have been so easy for a musician like > Rahman to go and settle in Mumbai and work for acclaimed filmmakers post " > Roja and Bombay ". But the man preferred not leaving his home, his roots to > a place where instant fame, recognition and money was assured. Of the many > ignored facts, Rahman's major success lies in working from his home. Home is > where your heart, mind, body and soul is. > > With no distraction whatsoever, he has all his energies focused on doing > quality work from the comfort of his home. It means a lot to be based out of > the place where your family is, where your soul is..your home, your > hometown. > > 5. Focus - Let your work speak for itself > > Yes, let your work speak for itself. Many a times, there are instances > where one will be criticized for the way he is, his dressing, his > upbringing, his economic background. One will be made fun off, and will be > called names. One will not get the support he expects to receive from his > seniors and so on….But at the end of all this, if you have a strong will > power you can overcome all these, and prove yourself with your work. > > There was a time when Rahman was being humiliated by some critics, > directors and producers over the kind of music he had scored, and all this > when he was at the peak of his career. He could do nothing about it, and > preferred to remain calm and unmoved. And when ever his work was released, > it got an outstanding response and was embraced by the masses. This > overwhelming response and success was a slap on the face of those critics, > producers and directors. This tell us, all we need to do is to focus on what > we are good at, not on the success it can bring. Success will follow us, our > work will speak of itself. > > 6. Service - Consideration for others > > Not many may have noticed that Rahman has introduced maybe a hundred new > young singers to the Tamil and Hindi screens – his faith in the youth of > India is evident in his statement that he would like youngsters to take a > different view of music after his winning the OSCARS. Rahman has done what > no other music director has done for the cause of music-starting a music > school, the KM MUSIC CONSERVATORY. His objective for starting this school is > to make Indian musicians have a global orchestra of their own. This is such > an innovative idea and Rahman is spending a lot of time, money and energy > towards realizing this noble musical mission! > > Rahman is the UN ambassador for the campaign fighting against poverty and > he has associated himself with many social causes. When he was in a state of > probably disillusionment - one of the things his mother said to him was "why > don't you live for others and then you will find a meaning to life". Rahman > stuck to that and he does music to make people happy and to enrich their > lives. > > On the night he returned to India after receiving the OSCARS, his request > that his fans ought not to disturb his neighbors in the dead of night > attracts attention to a long forgotten quality in India—consideration for > others. > > 7. Humility - Be Humble. Be Honest. Be Simple > > With all the above in place, being humble, simple and honest is all that > one needs to do to ensure a great life. With so much of stardom and > attention after the Golden Globe and OSCARS, Rahman could have got carried > away with the success, however he always chose work over publicity. > > After winning the OSCARS, he was asked by the press, " what's left for you > to achieve? " He replied in a polite way, " Well, I have not achieved > anything. I have not ended poverty level. I have not stopped wars > happening.For me these are achievements. And in my opinion, I am just a > small musician who has got an award that is it " ! > > He carries no weight around him, and that makes him completely approachable > and genuine. His childlike smile can pacify ones fear and anxiety of meeting > him in person. Its like his smile speaks a thousand words. It depicts the > purity of his heart and soul. Each and every success makes him more humble, > honest and simple. What more we can learn from this winner! > > Regardless of season he march towards rock climbing success. Even in tough > time his eyes do not move away from excellence. Commitment, giving 100 > percent, focusing on performance is the key ingredients to his success. > Meeting challenges and riding over obstacles are in his blood cells. > Transferring stumbling stones into opportunities with conviction and leading > towards 'WOW' level is the essence of his success. > > Through his eternal value and simple living A.R Rahman presents us with > opportunities for professional success provided we learn from them, adapt > them to our own situations and implement them appropriately. > > He convey a message to all of us silently especially to the youth - " > humble origins need not prevent us from aspiring for and achieving great > success ". How does he convey this message ? Dil Se ! > > Shamim > > -- > regards, > Vithur > > > > >
