For fans of Rahman, it was just a long overdue. I have deferred penning down so many posts on Rahman. The foremost reason my procrastination. All of it can't be summed in a post, I know. Just trying to put it together. Lots have been said and written about Guru (whenever I use Guru or MAN, plz note I am referring to Rahman). If Slumdog scores have bagged Guru, Golden Globe, BAFTA, 2 Oscars and a slew more, it just means he has got his long deserved and is a harbinger for more of his music to come in the global arena. The Kodak theatres was just a beginning.The MAN was worthy of it in his debut film 'Roja' itself. Scores of which will be cherished for eternity. As for that nail-biting moments he gave us on the day of OSCARS, I was moved to tears. It was personally very emotional. Didn't know why though. Back here in Chennai Kodambakam, a neighbour of Rahman said 'She couldn't hold her tears
when Rahman said few lines in Tamil 'Ella pugazhum Iraivanuke' and thanked his mother for being there'. Ya many of us felt the same. I very well knew he will definitely drop a line about peace. Holding the knight statuette for the 'Best Song', Guru said ' All this life, I had a choice of hate and love. I chose love and I am here'. When the nominees had an acceptance speech, there was our MAN who was focusing on his performance of the songs 'O saya' and the winning score 'Jai Ho'. The song 'Jai Ho' pocketing awards gave me a high. What if Roja, Dil Se, Bombay were produced under an American banner? At that moment I felt, OSCARS have nothing to do with recognition of Indian cinema. We have our National Awards for that. Academy awards for a moment seemed so huge and impersonal. Nevertheless Rahman, Gulzar and Resul Pookutty will be a head up for many other technicians from India to excel in the world stage. In the Thank You Cam, Guru said 'He wanted to cut the statuette into half and give it to Peter Gabriel who scored music for Wall-E'. That was quite touching. Back home he is lauded by everyone. For all kudos he gives an amicable smile scoring high on our hearts.
So what makes Guru so special. How is that Rahman managed to bag the most coveted awards for any musician?
1. He is a Genius 2. He is Hard-working
3. He is Spiritual 4. All the above
LOL:-) The Slumdog way! The answer is 'All the above'. Well your take on the same can be different. Genius, Indisputably he is. Acknowledged by many as a keyboard whiz, at a very young age he was seen in the orchestra of M.S.Viswanathan sir and Illayaraja sir. He was a part of the music troops Roots, Magic, Nemesis Avenue etc.He is got a degree for Western classical music from Trinity college,London. His creativity and thirst for innovation has no bounds. When Roja released, Indian cinema had got a new sound, rhythm. The way he used instruments like bass guitar, folk sounds and his modulation of vocals served well to get the exact feel of the songs. The MAN got the National Award in his maiden venture itself. To the Tamil music industry he was accepted gladly. Though Roja music was dubbed in Hindi and it did well, there were critics who thought it was just a stroke of luck and Rahman can't be trusted with big ones. That's when Ram Gopal Varma trusted Guru with Rangeela(1995) . He got his first flmfare award in Bollywood and also the 'R.D. Burman award for fresh music talent'. And he just took one more movie to button-out all evaluators. Yes, DilSe. In person 'DilSe' has been my favorite. Just like the word, I thought the music was directly from the heart, soul-stirring. After which Rahman became a household name in Bollywood too. TIME magazine listed Roja's soundtracks in the '10 best soundtracks of all time'. Melody is what he does best, I opine. He learnt the Sufi music from the noted Pakistani singer 'Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan' in 1997 during his visit to Lahore. I look at my CD collections, 'GURU' CD a priceless possession. I still remember I bought the CD during my semester exam and went on listening a weekend without preparing. Rahman would have fondly mentioned in the CD, 'Tere Bina' song, is a dedication to his teacher Nusrat saab.What a song to dedicate! From Classical to Qawwali he has composed music of all types. To top it all he sometimes goes behind the mike also. And that's when I like Guru the most, as a vocalist. He has sung more than a dozen numbers. My favorites being the romantic ones, Dil Se Re, Tere Bina, NewYork Nagaram. That tinge in his voice is just superb.Enough to prove his brilliance and proficiency I guess.
Hard-working. He works doggedly. Prefering late hours, he has his recording studio in his home itself. The very famous 'Panchathan Record Inn'.(Wanna be there atleast once;) Ask the directors why Rahman remains top-notch, they say it is his tenacity and allegiance to give the best each time. He is a favorite of ace directors Mani Ratnam and Ashuthosh Gowariker who feel Rahman gets into the very crux of the story and weaves music which blends well with the storyline. If awards can say about the amount of hardwork, then he scores no less. He is got nearly 180 awards which includes 2 Oscars, 1 Golden Globe and BAFTA(all 4 for Slumdog), 4 national awards(Roja, Minsara Kanavu, Lagaan, Kannathil Muthamittal) 25 Filmfare awards. Films apart, the two patriotic albums 'Vaande Mataram' for our 50th Independence Day and the classical 'Jana Gana Mana' stand testimony to the kind of untiring musician he is. He THINKS big and so he DOES. By composing for 'Bombay Dreams', Guru made his maiden-venture to the West. In 2004 he composed for 'The Lord of Rings Theatre Production'. He has done lots of stage shows including the world tours where he performed concerts in Dubai, Singapore and many other. Recently when I heard his 'Connections' album, I just couldn't but be surprised . He manages to stay connected with us however busy he is with his projects. And 'Jiya se Jiya', I hear it each time I wish I hugged him:)
Spiritual. 'Ella pugazhum Iraivanuke' has become his trademark dialog now. But why? Why does he dedicate all fame and praise to the man in his ethereal mansion, the Almighty, the Maula. To know this one has to trace years back. Time when Guru lost his father, composer R.K.Shekar. At times of distress there was a saint, Pir Quadri who would give the family emotional support. Rahman says the saint's blessings and words had an impact on him. He was 21 when he converted to Islam. Guru says "Prayer is more like a meditation for me. And it helps me clean my inner self. I go through death five times a day when I pray and I am born again. When I start, I feel I am dead and my soul has departed and when I finish my prayers I am back". His words seem so genuine. For more on that article, read Outlook . Every person gives credit to something that brings the best out of him. For Guru it is God, it is his prayers. I believe Spirituality definitely has something to do with Humanity too, after all it is the same 'Oneness' feeling. I am referring to the KM music conservatory here. He started it keeping in mind the budding musicians. It offers music courses at diploma level. What more can a musician give back to his country? Musical Messiah, sounds heavenly right? Hail you Guru!
Anyways we have to thank the makers of 'Slumdog Millionaire' which got Guru Oscars, because of the kind of inspiration it gives. Ya, that for a child who is dabbling with his keyboard, isn't this enough stirring to plow ahead. On March 1st the entire Tamil music fraternity felicitated the 'Oscar Thamizhan' for winning the Oscars and making the industry proud. The show was telecasted today. It was really so nice seeing the 3 mavens together IllayaRaja sir, Rahman sir and M.S.V. sir. Just then I felt, how lucky we Thamizhyans are, we have been able to hear extraordinary songs for many decades now.
With many International projects coming his way and Guru saying 'I don’t want to lose out on the extraordinary work a platform like the Oscars will provide in the future', the question raises whether we will lose Rahman to Hollywood? As Kamal Hasan commented 'Now the onus is on us. We have to make good movies so that Rahman stays here'. Must be, he is right. Well even otherwise we fans know what to do. We would sing his 'Swades' song back to him 'Ye Jo Des Hai Tera, Swades Hai Tera, Tujhe Hain Pukara...':) Hope he multitasks and keeps going with all the grace from God. Jai Ho Guru!
