What was that one factor that fuelled musician A.R Rahman’s rise to the top of his game as an unparallelled genius?
Canorous innovation? Compositional brilliance? Euphonic skill?
Nope, it was boredom.
Surpirsed? We were too, but the maestro said so himself.
“After losing my father at a young age, I was thrust into the world of music out of necessity rather than choice,” Rahman revealed. “The first ten years were marked by rejections, low self-esteem, and boredom.”
And yet, he reflected, perhaps these adversities were the best things he got from those early years: his dissatisfaction with status quo fuelled his ambition to break out of his circumstances.
He was speaking to media ahead of a much-anticipated tour next month. Having visited our shores only weeks ago for IFFM, AR Rahman is set now to return to Australia, with a live show each in Sydney and Melbourne, and an appearance at the Sydney arts festival SXSW.
Given his body of work, Rahman is a wonderful fit for this festival, which highlights the intersection of the interactive, film, television, and music industries.
Sought after his neoteric approach to music, adopting new sounds and technologies into his compositions, he will be reaching out not only to his traditional fan base at this event, but hopefully attracting new ones for who the role of AI in music is already a talking point.
While A.R Rahman acknowledged that AI could be useful in certain areas, such as background music or automated tasks, he remained skeptical about its ability to replicate the emotional depth that live performers bring to their art.
“When you hear a person (sing), hear their breath, the artifacts of the voice… that’s magic,” Rahman mused, emphasising the irreplaceable quality of human artistry. “While AI may serve as a tool, it cannot replicate the emotional connection that live performances evoke in audiences. We always love the human struggle behind (creations)!”
Looking ahead though, Rahman acknowledged a role for AI in concert settings (indeed he may already be using aspects of it in his own shows in many ways) but is wary of losing the humanity that makes live performances special. “People are going to get a little messed up if something just performs (on stage), without any human (element) to it,” he noted.
It is interesting to note the juxtaposition of the cutting edge, with the familiar, in Rahman’s work. Nowhere is this more prominent than in his acknowledgement of the family and primary relationships in his life and career.
Choosing a career in music over a more traditional, stable path can be daunting. Rahman, however, was fortunate to have the support of his mother who encouraged him to follow in his father’s footsteps.
“She believed that it would be useless for me to pursue any academics,” he offered with honesty, acknowledging his mother’s pivotal role in allowing him to fully immerse himself in music. Her faith in his abilities gave him the confidence to embrace a path less chosen, something he is deeply grateful for today.
Equally, Rahman remains grateful to the power of cinema, which was instrumental in getting his music heard and accepted. In India, movies serve as the biggest marketing tool for musicians, and Rahman’s collaborations with leading directors and producers set him on a trajectory toward success.
He recalled his first break, which came in what he calls ‘a moment of destiny’. Referring to Mani Ratnam as one of India’s finest film directors, he described being approached to compose the score and soundtrack for the Tamil romance Roja in 1992. “That was a big gig,” he said, as the film won multiple prestigious awards, catapulting him to fame. For Rahman, this success was not just about recognition, but a validation of his self-worth and motivation to continue pushing boundaries in music. It went on to open the doors to an illustrious career with Grammy and Oscar nods.
“The good thing (about it) is, everybody now comes with such trust that I’ll be able to pull it off,” he revealed.
No doubt we’ll see A.R Rahman pull it off yet again when he performs in Sydney and Melbourne next month.
READ MORE: AR Rahman at IFFM 2024
