This is Part 18 of Legends of Indian Cinema, our 20-part series on the actors, filmmakers and musicians who shaped Indian films across languages. New here? Start with Part 1: Dadasaheb Phalke, or read the previous part, Part 17: Ilaiyaraaja.
In 1992, a 25-year-old jingle composer scored his first film, and Indian music was never the same. A.R. Rahman combined Indian classical and folk music with electronic sounds, Sufi singing and world music. In 2009, he became the first Indian to win two Academy Awards in a single night.
Early life
- Born A.S. Dileep Kumar on 6 January 1967 in Madras.
- His father, R.K. Shekhar, was a composer and arranger for Malayalam films. He died when Dileep was nine, and the family rented out his instruments to survive.
- As a teenager, Dileep played keyboards for composers including Ilaiyaraaja and M.S. Viswanathan. He later won a scholarship to Trinity College of Music, London.
- In the late 1980s, his family embraced Sufi Islam, and he took the name Allah Rakha Rahman.
Roja and a new sound
- Rahman built a studio at home and became a leading composer of advertising jingles.
- Director Mani Ratnam heard his work and signed him for Roja (1992). Its fresh, crystal-clear sound won Rahman the National Film Award for his debut.
- Hits followed: Gentleman, Kadhalan, Bombay (1995), Muthu, Minsaara Kanavu and Jeans.
National and global stardom
- Hindi films such as Rangeela (1995), Dil Se (1998), Taal (1999), Lagaan (2001), Swades, Rang De Basanti (2006), Jodhaa Akbar and Rockstar made him a household name.
- His album Vande Mataram (1997), released for India's 50th year of independence, is one of the best-selling Indian non-film albums.
- He composed Andrew Lloyd Webber's West End musical Bombay Dreams (2002).
- For Danny Boyle's Slumdog Millionaire, he won two Oscars in 2009, for Best Original Score and Best Original Song ("Jai Ho", shared with lyricist Gulzar). He also won two Grammy Awards.
Honours
- A record seven National Film Awards for music, the most recent for Ponniyin Selvan: I.
- Padma Shri (2000) and Padma Bhushan (2010).
- He founded the KM Music Conservatory in Chennai in 2008 to train young musicians.
Legacy
Rahman's influence is everywhere, from film scores to independent music and global collaborations. His famous words at the 2009 Oscars, "Ella pugazhum iraivanukke" (All praise to God), spoken in Tamil, showed millions of Indians that a voice from Chennai could reach the world stage.
Next in the series: Part 19: Mani Ratnam.
