Jan 27, 2009
When I heard the music of Ghajini (it is experimental garbage, if you’re dying to know) I knew instantly AR Rahman was very bored. Those who haven’t been blinded by passion for the genius know exactly what I’m saying. There is no doubt the fellow is awesome, but that doesn’t mean every track he makes is gold. Sometimes even kings get off their throne and find it more comfortable to squat on the floor.
The problem isn’t with Rahman, it’s with people like us who expect him to deliver mindblowing music non-stop. He can’t do it, man… no one can, under that kind of pressure. Roja, Rangeela, Bombay, Kadhalan and many more movies have appeared diamond-studded just because Rahman has composed unbelievably fabulous scores for them. Can’t take that away from him, he is the best we have.
But when I heard/read about all the nominations and awards the music of Slumdog Millionaire has been picking up, I had to go back and listen to the soundtrack, desperate to listen to what my ears had missed that people were going crazy over.
I found nothing – the two tracks I liked still sounded as great. Besides Mausam & Escape and Millionaire, there is nothing I’d willingly listen to ever again. Actually, I don’t even care that much about Millionaire, so there.
I don’t want to talk crap about the man, he is too good and deserves all the good things he gets. But pay attention to the last few soundtracks he has come up with and ask yourself honestly if the music was mindblowing or you decided to love it just because the CD had AR Rahman’s name on it.
Check this out – half the world hasn’t heard good music lately so it falls for a bunch of above-average songs coming from a third world country because someone told them the composer was a genius. The other half of the world is going ga-ga over the music because they think if half the world is saying it, it’s probably true. And we Indians are creaming ourselves anticipating international acclaim which yet again displays our desperation for validation. Accept the bouquets, by all means, but let’s not delude ourselves into considering a musical award from a deaf jury any sort of achievement.
For my fellow Rahman fans – I love the guy and his music, but the Airtel theme is one of the worst tunes I’ve ever heard… it is trying so hard to be a musical piece that the sad Doordarshan tune leaves me impressed in comparison.
Coming soon… The Sound Of Noise
Posted by Aditya Mehta | { 21 } Comments
From my Buzz18 blog “Lashkar-E-Shaitan”
Mehta Kya Kehta? 