“India Is My Home”: ARR’s Gentle Reminder

During a recent interaction with BBC Asian Network, Rahman spoke about getting limited work offers in Bollywood. The comments opened to a lot of backlash and criticism against the star music composer.

However now, Rahman decided to put an end to the controversy in his own style. Rahman took to Instagram, sharing a video message to everyone, confirming that his intentions are pure but were misunderstood.

Rahman said, “Dear friends, music has always been my way of connecting, celebrating and honouring a culture. India is my inspiration, my teacher and my home. I understand that intentions can sometimes be misunderstood, but my purpose has always been to uplift, honour and serve through music. I have never wished to cause pain and I hope my sincerity is felt.”

Rahman also added, “From nurturing Jhalaa, presented at the Wave Summit in front of the Honourable Prime Minister and Ruh-e-Noor, to collaborating with the young Naga musicians to create a string orchestra, to mentoring the Sunshine Orchestra, to building Secret Mountain, India’s first multicultural virtual band, and the honour of scoring Ramayana alongside Hans Zimmer, each journey has strengthened my purpose.”

Earlier, in his interview with BBC, Rahman said, “People who are not creative have the power now to decide things, and this might have been a communal thing also, but not in my face. It comes to me as Chinese whispers that they booked you, but the music company went ahead and hired their five composers. I said, ‘Oh, that’s great, rest for me, I can chill out with my family.”

AR Rahman is usually someone who does not attract controversy and even if his name is dragged into one, he will always opt for peace. In the same manner, he has now addressed the controversy, without naming anyone, without targeting anyone and without even taking names of those who criticised him in the recent past. He also did not want to counter react to the backlash that took place.

Rahman wanted to put an end to the entire issue amicably and on a peace note, he made it clear that his intentions are misunderstood but ultimately, he will focus on making better music, while also confirming that India is his inspiration.