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A.
 
R. Rahman
Allah Rakha Rahman
Birth name
A. S. Dileep Kumar
Also known as
A. R. Rahman
Born
January 6, 1966 (age 43)Chennai,Tamil Nadu,India 
Genre(s) 
Film score,Theatre,World Music 
Occupation(s)
Composer,record producer,music director, singer,instrumentalist,arranger,programmer 
Years active
1985-present
Website
A. R. Rahman.com 
Allah Rakha Rahman
(
A. R. Rahman
; bornJanuary 6,1966as
A. S. Dileep Kumar
inChennai,Tamil Nadu,India
 
) is an Indianfilm composer,record producer,musicianand singer. His film scoring career began in the early 1990s. He has won thirteenFilmfareAwards, fourNational Film Awards, aBAFTA Award, aGolden Globeand two Academy Awards.
[1]
 
 
Working inIndia's various film industries,international cinemaandtheatre, by 2003, Rahman, in a career spanning over a decade, has sold more than 100 million records of hisfilm scoresandsoundtracksworldwide,
[2]
and sold over 200 million cassettes,
[3]
 making him one of the world'sall-time top selling recording artists.
Time
magazine has referred to him as the "Mozart of Madras" and several Tamilcommentators have coined him the nickname
 Isai Puyal
(Tamil:
Isaipuyal
; English:
 Music Storm
).
[4]
In 2009, the magazine placed Rahman in theTime 100list of 'World'sMost Influential People'.
[5]
 
Early life and influences
A. R. Rahman was born in a musically affluentTamilfamily. His fatherR. K. Shekhar, was a Chennai based composer and conductor forMalayalam films. Rahman lost hisfather at a young age and his family rented out musical equipment as a source of income.He was raised by his mother Kareema (Kashturi), who was from a Muslim family
[6]
.During these formative years, Rahman served as a keyboard player and an arranger inbands such as "Roots", with childhood friend and percussionistSivamani, John Anthony,Suresh Peters, JoJo and Raja.
[7]
Rahman is the founder of the Chennai-based rock group,"Nemesis Avenue".
[8]
He played the keyboard andpiano, thesynthesizer, theharmonium  and theguitar. His curiosity in the synthesizer, in particular increased because, he says, itwas the “ideal combination of music and technology".
[9]
He began early training in musicunder Master Dhanraj. At the age of 11, he joined, as a keyboardist, the troupe of Ilaiyaraaja,
[9]
one of many composers to whom musical instruments belonging toRahman's father were rented. Rahman later played in theorchestraof M. S. Viswanathan  andRamesh Naidu, accompaniedZakir Hussain,Kunnakudi VaidyanathanandL. Shankaron world tours and obtained a scholarship to theTrinity College of Musicwhere he graduated with a degree inWestern classical music.
[10]
 
Career
Film scoring and soundtracks
In 1992, Rahman began his own music recording and mixing studio attached to thebackyard of his house called thePanchathan Record Inn, which was developed intoIndia's most advanced recording studio.
[11]
He initially composed music jingles foradvertisements,Indian Televisionchannels and music scores in documentaries, amongother projects. In 1992, he was approached by film directorMani Ratnamto compose thescore and soundtrack for Ratnam's Tamil film
 Roja
.
[11]
The debut led Rahman to receivetheRajat Kamalaward for Best Music Director at theNational Film Awards, the first time ever by a first-time film composer. Rahman has since then gone on to win the awardthree more times (for his scores for
 Minsaara Kanavu
(
 Electric Dreams
, Tamil) in 1997,
 Lagaan
(
Tax
, Hindi) in 2002,
Kannathil Muthamittal
(
 A Peck on the Cheek 
, Tamil) in2003, the most ever by any composer.
[12]
 
 
 Roja' 
s score met with high sales and acclaim, in its original and dubbed versions,bringing about a marked change infilm musicat the time, and Rahman followed this withsuccessful scores forTamil–language filmsof theChennai film industryincluding Ratnam's politically charged
 Bombay
, the urbanite
Kadhalan
,Bharathiraaja's
Karuththamma ,
the saxophonic
 Duet  ,
 
 Indira ,
and the romantic comedies
 Mr. Romeo
and
 Love Birds ,
which gained him considerable notice.
[13][14]
His fanbase inJapanincreasedwith
 Muthu
's success there.
[15]
His soundtracks gained him recognition in the TamilNadu film industry and across the world for his stylistic versatality in his pieces includinginWestern classical, Carnatic, Tamil traditional/folk, jazz,reggaeandrock  music.
[16][17][18]
TheBombay Theme—from Ratnam's
 Bombay
—would later reappear inDeepa Mehta's
Fire
and various compilations and media.
 Rangeela
, directed byRamGopal Varma, marked Rahman's debut forHindi-language filmsmade in theMumbai film industry. Many successful scores for films including
 Dil Se
and the percussive
Taal
 followed.
[19][20]
 Sufi mysticismwould form the basis of Chaiyya Chaiyyafrom the former and the composition "Zikr" from his score of the film
 Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose: TheForgotten Hero
for which he created large orchestral and choral arrangements.
[7]
Musicalcues in scores for
Sangamam
and
 Iruvar 
employed Carnatic vocals and instruments suchas the veena with leads of rock guitar and jazz.
[21]
In the 2000s Rahman created hit scoresforRajiv Menon's
Kandukondain Kandukondain ,
 
 Alaipayuthey ,
 Ashutosh Gowariker's
Swades
and
 Rang De Basanti
.
[22]
He composed songs with Hindustani motifs for
Water 
 (2005).Rahman has worked with Indian poets and lyricists such asGulzar,Mehboob, VairamuthuandVaali. His collaborations with some film directors have always resulted in successful soundtracks, particularly with the director Mani Ratnamwho he has workedwith since
 Roja
, all of which have been hits, and the directorS. Shankarin the films
Gentleman
,
Kadhalan
,
 Indian
,
 Jeans
,
 Mudhalvan
,
 Nayak 
,
 Boys
and
Sivaji
.
[23]
 Rahman attached and opened a developed extension studio to his Panchathan Record Innin 2005 calledAM Studiosin Kodambakkam, Chennai — considered to be the mostdeveloped, equipped and high tech studio in Asia.
[24][25]
In 2006, Rahman launched hisown music label, KM Music.
[26]
Its first release was his score to the film
Sillunu OruKaadhal.
Rahman scored theMandarin languagepicture
Warriors of Heaven and Earth
 in 2003 after researching and utilizingChineseandJapanese classicalmusic, and co- scored theShekhar Kapoorhelmed
 Elizabeth: The Golden Age
in 2007. His compositionshave been reused in scores within India
[27]
and have made appearances in
 Inside Man
,
 Lord of War 
and
The Accidental Husband .
In 2008, he scored the
Slumdog Millionaire
 soundtrack , for which he won a Golden Globe and two Academy Awards, becoming thefirst Indian citizen to do so.
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