Hindustan Times
AR Rahman reacted to the remix culture and said he finds it weird to take something recent and remake it again.
AR Rahman is the latest musician to express his displeasure with the remix culture. Many iconic songs have been recreated in the past few years, on most occasions disappointing those who loved the original version. In the latest, Falguni Pathak strongly reacted after Neha Kakkar recreated her 1999 song Maine Payal Hai Chhankai and said the new version O Sajna 'ruined' the original.
AR Rahman also said he is not fond of the remix culture, and is himself very careful about using someone else's work. New songs composed by the musician will be heard in Mani Ratnam's Ponniyin Selvan Part 1, marking his reunion with the filmmaker after 30 years. Rahman shared that he and Mani Ratnam have received compliments for the freshness of their songs.
When asked about his views on other musicians remixing his tunes, Rahman told India Today, "The more I see, the more it is distorted. The intention of the composer gets distorted. People say, ‘I am reimagining.’ Who are you to re-imagine? I am also very careful of taking someone else’s work. You have to be respectful and I think it is a grey area, we need to sort it out."
The musician was also asked how he deals with requests from producers and directors to remix his own tunes and give them modern-day touch. He replied, "The other day, we had the Telugu music launch and the producers said, every song that you two (Mani Ratnam and AR Rahman) make sounds fresh now because it is all done in digital mastering. It already has that quality and everyone appreciates it. So, if I need to do that, I need to recreate it. Of course, people take permission, but you cannot take something recent and remake it again. It feels weird."
Ponniyin Selvan I's album consists of five songs, including Ponni Nadhi, Devaralan Aatam, and Alaikadal. The film is scheduled to release in theatres on September 30. The second part will come out in 2023.