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A. R. Rahman
Reshaping Indian film music with Roja and Bombay, then winning two Oscars for Slumdog Millionaire.
Roja · Bombay
- Born
- 6 January 1967
- Birthplace
- Madras, India (now Chennai)
More people
A. R. Rahman
A. R. Rahman combines Indian melodic traditions with electronic production, orchestral writing and an unusually wide range of voices. His work spans Tamil and Hindi cinema, international films, stage music and recordings under his own name.
Early life
A childhood in studios
His father R. K. Shekhar composed and arranged film music. Rahman learned keyboards young and began professional work after his father’s death.
Learning across traditions
Session playing, bands and advertising jingles developed his command of instruments and studio technology before he became a film composer.
Career
- 1980s–1991
Session player and studio builder
He worked as a keyboardist and jingle composer, then developed his own recording studio in Chennai.
- 1992–1995
A new film sound
Mani Ratnam’s Roja marked his composing debut. Bombay and Rangeela extended his reach across Indian cinema.
- 1997–2002
Albums and the stage
Vande Mataram presented him as a recording artist; Bombay Dreams brought his music to London’s West End.
- 2008–2010
International awards
Slumdog Millionaire earned two Oscars in 2009 and two Grammys in 2010. He also composed the music for 127 Hours.
- 2010s–2020s
A broad creative practice
He continued film composition and live performance while developing music education and projects including the Firdaus Orchestra.
Selected work
Roja
Melody, new voices and detailed electronic production signalled a fresh sound in Tamil film music.
Bombay
Songs and an instrumental theme connect intimate emotion with the film’s communal tensions.
Lagaan
Folk-inflected songs and dramatic scoring support a story set in colonial India.
Slumdog Millionaire
A rhythm-driven score accompanies the film’s journey through Mumbai. Jai Ho, with lyrics by Gulzar, won the song Oscar.
Beyond work
A change of name and faith
Born Dileep Kumar, he adopted the name Allah Rakha Rahman after converting to Islam. Sufi traditions have been an important musical influence.
Teaching the next generation
He founded KM Music Conservatory in Chennai, bringing Indian and Western musical training together with music technology.
Sources & photo credit
Life and career ↗Institutional or specialist reference ↗2009 Academy Awards ↗Grammy record ↗Music education and projects ↗Photo: Sriram Narasimhan / Silverscreen Media Inc.. CC BY-SA 3.0 · Original image. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.
