Airtel – Why was @ARRahman Scared? | Untold Stories by Rajiv Menon - Pt. 2 | Rahman Music Sheets 78

Introduction

The video is about A.R. Rahman's journey as a composer and pop icon, including his transformation from a shy person to a confident performer.

A.R. Rahman's Journey

• A.R. Rahman is known for his emotional approach to music.

• His transformation into becoming a youth pop icon started with Vande Mataram in 1997.

• Bombay Dreams jump-started Rahman's career in international projects.

• He went from being just a nerdy composer inside the studio to becoming a visual pop icon performing all over the world.

• His first commercial endorsement was the Airtel campaign, which was conceptualized by one of India's largest ad agencies.

Airtel Campaign

• The toughest challenge for the agency was convincing Rahman to appear on screen.

• The signature tune of the campaign became one of the most famous corporate call tunes in India.

Technology and Music

• The video discusses how technology has changed since the time when people could actually be talking on the phone and relaying information.

Conclusion

The video provides insights into A.R. Rahman's journey as a composer and pop icon, including his transformation from being shy to becoming confident. It also discusses his involvement in the Airtel campaign and how technology has changed over time.

Shooting the Airtel Ad in London

The team had to shoot the Airtel ad in London but were instructed not to show anything that would specifically identify it as London. They had to find visuals that were not typically British but still communicated an international feel, which was present in the music and persona of the artist.

Visuals for the Ad

• The team was instructed not to show anything that would specifically identify London.

• They had to find visuals that were not typically British but still communicated an international feel.

• The ad was all about sound and had to be heard more than watched.

Live Every Moment

The tagline "Live every moment" meant if you have a mobile phone, you are actually living every moment. Raymond took technology and molded it into a soul of music produced at the cost of rupees 5 crore or 1 million US dollars in early 2002. In no time, it became the most downloaded ringtone across the globe, and Airtel's market share shot up immediately.

Live Every Moment

• The tagline "Live every moment" meant if you have a mobile phone, you are actually living every moment.

• Raymond took technology and molded it into a soul of music produced at the cost of rupees 5 crore or 1 million US dollars in early 2002.

• In no time, it became the most downloaded ringtone across the globe, and Airtel's market share shot up immediately.

A.R. Rahman's Musical Sensibilities

A.R. Rahman's musical sensibilities as a composer of AD films did not impact his feature film songs and background scores. He has done three feature films with the director, and he approaches his background score emotionally rather than intellectually. He loves the tripling of words, which became his musical signature, and he collaborates with other musicians.

A.R. Rahman's Musical Sensibilities

• A.R. Rahman's musical sensibilities as a composer of AD films did not impact his feature film songs and background scores.

• He approaches his background score emotionally rather than intellectually.

• He loves the tripling of words, which became his musical signature.

• He collaborates with other musicians.

A.R. Rahman's Unique Approach to Music

A.R. Rahman has a unique approach to music that involves doubling or tripling sounds to create a childlike rhyme effect in his compositions. His melodies are simplistic but have different rhythm patterns from conventional music, and he experiments with various kinds of music without worrying about what will happen.

A.R. Rahman's Unique Approach to Music

• He doubles or triples sounds to create a childlike rhyme effect in his compositions.

• His melodies are simplistic but have different rhythm patterns from conventional music.

• He experiments with various kinds of music without worrying about what will happen.

Making Music with AR Rahman

In this section, Rajiv Menon talks about how AR Rahman approaches music-making and how he continuously grows and changes as a musician.

AR Rahman's Approach to Music-Making

• During the recording of Mani Ratnam's "Tu Hi Re" song, the song was sounding like a ghazal and wasn't going anywhere. Hariharan wanted to sing it more classically, but Rahman didn't know what to do.

• Eventually, Rahman suggested trying to sing it in a folk style. This made the song come alive with all these dying notes.

• Rajiv Menon describes how Rahman would hear a situation, go in prayer, light a candle, forget everything else out of the world and let it flow. He would record improvisations that could be 10 minutes long and then chop them into two or three-minute songs.

• Rahman would fix a groove and play different things on top of it - some beat, some offbeat, some ad-lib - before starting to sing. As he sang more confidently, his influences from Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan became apparent.

• As a musician, Rahman was continuously growing and changing.

AR Rahman's Passion for Music

• Despite having so much work to do as a star musician, what really drives AR Rahman is the child in a toy shop who has to buy the latest equipment and try it out to see what new sound he can create.

• His passion for music is not driven by intellectual arrogance or ego; instead, he just wants to see what he can come up with next.

Conclusion

• Rajiv Menon compares AR Rahman to Sachin Tendulkar, saying that he remained focused on his music and continuously grew as a musician. Even today, Rahman's joy for music is still there, and he wants to be the musician who keeps creating new sounds.