Should
Rahman be Hollywood bound? This is the
question I was left with after listening
to his instrumental soundtracks of Danny
Boyle’s latest 127 hours. If one
pretty-good (and not the best by any stretch
of imagination) work of Rahman could fetch
him two Academy awards, should he not
be aiming at further International glory
by working with Hollywood directors who
have an eye or rather ear for the importance
of soundtracks in films? He has won the
national awards, the prestigious padma
award, awards from almost all Indian film
industries wherever he has worked in.
He has achieved all that is available
in the Indian film industry & there
is not much left for him to accomplish
here. That makes his case to be Hollywood
bound all the more momentous.
The other option (which is what he seems
to be doing right now) is to be based
in India, work with a restricted, selective
set of Indian films, look for |
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options from the West,sign for
& work on apt films. This might look attractive
for the legion of Rahmaniacs but unfortunately is
not the best option for the single reason that the
people from Hollywood aren’t going to seek someone
based in India for sheer logistical reasons if not
any other, even if the person is a two academy award
winner!
That leaves him in the dilemma of whether to shift
base or to work with the best in India. If he chooses
the latter, it would add to the dearth of an Indian
in the international scene and he would only be following
the names of Ilaiyaraja & Kamal Haasan –
People with tremendous class & yet not as internationally-famous
as they deserve to be , thanks to either their disinterest
(Ilaiyaraja’s case) or their restricted-scope
(Kamal’s case). Thanks to Slumdog Millionaire,
Rahman has crossed both these hurdles with a solid
exposure in the international scene & the only
way for him is forward. It better be! And ironically,
this statement comes from someone who is going to
be utterly disappointed if & when Rahman decides
to quit Indian cinema for good. Disappointed because
of the angst that there wouldn’t be a lot more
Indian Rahman music to look forward to. The good reasons
that would balance out the disappointments are:
• His move would encourage other brilliant talents
in Indian film industry to take the extra mile in
seeking international exposure & Rahman’s
success would only bring them confidence to try that
out.
• The true worth of Rahman would be seen by
those who still consider him to be no better than
some relatively new, rising music directors in the
background score department. If one Liberation track
of 127 hours cannot convince them that they are wrong,
a bombardment of such tracks in the future should
and would!
• There would be no more Yuvvraajs,Delhi 6s,Jhootha
Hi Sahis whose blissful tracks would get lost in the
commercial failures of the films, for,in the international
scene, acclaim gained by music is not correlated to
the commercial success that the film gains.
So,Go on Rahman. Lead the way, like you have always
done!
Sivaram L
ucanpostme@gmail.com
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