Music composer AR Rahman grabbed headlines for his recent comments on the Hindi film Chhaava, where he admitted that he found the film ‘divisive’. The music composer faced backlash for his comments and later shared a statement apologising for the ‘pain’ caused. On Saturday, National Award-winning lyricist Varun Grover came out in defence of AR Rahman and reflected on the entire fiasco. (Also read: AR Rahman breaks silence after backlash and reiterates love for India: ‘Never wished to cause pain’)
What Varun Grover said
Varun shared the music video of O Paalanhaare, a much-loved number composed by AR Rahman from the film Lagaan on his X account. He wrote in the caption, “The greatest living composer of the last 3 decades got attacked and abused (even by people within the industry) for stating an opinion in the politest, mildest manner, that too based on his lived-experience.”
He added, “And the very next day forced to issue an apology/clarification to calm the toxic mob down. If any further proof was needed to confirm his hints at the rising divisiveness…”
Meanwhile, in his video statement Rahman called India his teacher and home, and stated, “Music has always been my way of connecting, celebrating and honouring our culture. India is my inspiration, my teacher and my home. I understand that intentions can sometimes be misunderstood. But my purpose has always been to uplift, honour and serve through music. I have never wished to cause pain, and I hope my sincerity is felt.”
What did AR Rahman say?
In an interview with BBC Asian Network, Rahman was asked whether he ever felt prejudice in Bollywood as a Tamil composer. He said, “Maybe I never got to know of this, maybe it was concealed by God, but I didn’t feel any of this. The past eight years, maybe, because a power shift has happened, and people who are not creative have the power now. It might be a communal thing also… but it is not in my face.” He also criticised Chhaava for cashing in on ‘divisiveness’.