Will the real Ponniyin Selvan please stand up?

A couple of weeks ago I wrote a post calling AR Rahman to "Please Stop" making music, and although those were strong words that many thought could have been avoided, they did emerge from a place of strong emotion and connection towards his music. The post did receive some criticism but nothing very harsh, and I could understand the passion of all Rahman fans behind those comments. I am critical of AR Rahman's work these days but also because the bar is higher for him than for the rest of the lot. I will have to clinically analyse a song with greater depth than if it was composed by a debutant and I don't think that it is unfair.

I, like many millions of fans, had a smile on my face when I saw this post by AR Rahman sitting next to his mentor, and the absolute God of not just Indian music, but Music itself according to me. But this is not about Ilaiyaraja, but this magical human being Rahman. Despite everything disrespectful and harsh that keeps coming from his teacher Rahman manages to always keep his cool and shows deep humility and respect. We all would have never witnessed the slightest display of arrogance and anger. This is from one of the greatest Indian composers with envious consistency over 30 years. That is why I wanted to talk about not just his traits but his colossal musical record as well.

AR Rahman came into the industry at one of the toughest times owing to the dominance of Ilaiyaraja in 1992 and it couldn't have been without his ability or hard work that he rose to such fame leaving others by the wayside. The sounds he created and the digital experience were such a turnaround and nobody come could close. ARR at times broke the structure of songs which had the usual pallavi-anupallavi-charanam and made Indians listen to some of the trending Western pop influences. Anyone who said that he couldn't diversify his styles probably knew infinitesimally less about music. He scored in folk, Carnatic classical, rock, Jazz, hip-hop, and kuthu as well. None of these ventures was hard-core but had Rahman's creative additions to it, like none of us, would have ever heard rap in Tamil before "Petta-rap" but that too wasn't pure rap.

He was the musician who made the world of music go upside down back in the 1950s and 1960s when Tamil music was getting influenced by Bollywood, and that changed to AR Rahman either directly composing his originals being copied into Bollywood. The ability to adapt alone helped ARR achieve something which even Ilaiyarja couldn't successfully do despite a few attempts. He then traversed over to global recognition as well with his double Oscar double Grammy, a BAFTA and a Golden Globe award. I remember how surreal it was to watch Denzel Washington in action with "Chaiya Chaiya" in the background in "Inside Man " and Nicholas Cage slowly ambulate with the 'Bombay Theme' in the background in "Lords of War".

Rahman not just scored memorable songs, but also helped numerous talented singers showcase their talent without allowing just a few to dominate, a common characteristic under previous composers. I also would have never known the names of all the musicians involved in a song before AR Rahman started giving official credits for their roles. He thus came, saw and conquered the whole music scene not just in India but globally.

'Ponniyin Selvan' was a title given to a famous Chola King as he was the greatest son of Kaveri(the river), and apparently, he was very benevolent, well-behaved towards all people and had one pleasing face. I think for all these reasons and AR Rahman's unquestionable love for Tamil, he should be given that title in this day and age.

Now does all this mean that I repent for my earlier statements and that I am walking back on that? No. Everything good comes to an end and a genius like him should know best when to call it a day. I recently saw Serena Williams speak on Centre Court after her 3rd Round loss at the US open. She was retiring because she knew she was in no way close to her best. It was painful to see the greatest Woman Tennis player announce retirement but it is only natural for even greatness to bid adieu. AR Rahman fans pointing to some random songs here and there as a sign of his undiminished genius are cheating themselves because it is like saying that Serena is still great because she won 2 rounds.