New Delhi, Feb 1 (UNI) Oscar-winning composer AR Rahman, who recently made headlines for suggesting that the Hindi film industry may have become more “communal” in recent years, addressed the issue indirectly on the latest episode of The Great Indian Kapil Show, using the show’s whisper game as a metaphor for how messages can be distorted.
Referring to the game, Rahman remarked, “This is a good exercise to see how information gets misunderstood. Different states, different cultures. The problem with the world is this, how messages get corrupted on the way.” His comments appeared to reflect on the controversy surrounding his earlier remarks, which he later clarified had been misunderstood.
Rahman appeared on the show to promote Gandhi Talks, a silent film directed by Kishor Pandurang Belekar, for which he has composed the music. He was joined by the film’s cast, including Vijay Sethupathi, Aditi Rao Hydari and Siddharth Jadhav.
Speaking about composing for a silent film, Rahman said, “If there are no dialogues, it’s such a celebration of music. Because you have all the real estate to do music, but also terrifying because people will be judging. Every note will be exposed.” He added that Belekar was uniquely supportive of his creative process.
“He’s the first director who never came and told me anything negative and said, ‘I don’t like this.’ Whatever I give, he takes it. Even if I play ‘tang’, he would say yes,” Rahman quipped.
Earlier, the composer had spoken candidly about self-doubt and creative pressure in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter India. Reflecting on interactions with filmmakers over the years, he said, “For the past six years, to be frank, when people come to you, the ’90s generation have a certain nostalgia, certain affinity towards your music. The same goes for those born in 2000s, and so on for those from the next decade. They come and gaslight you. They say, ‘In the ’90s, you did Roja (1992). That’s very good music, sir!’ That feels like now, you’re not doing good music, right? It actually harms your thinking if you’re not in your best mood.”
Rahman revealed that this mindset pushed him to take on 20–30 projects over the last six years to evolve creatively and regain confidence in his work.
However, in an interview with BBC Asian Network, he also spoke about receiving fewer offers in recent years, attributing it to shifts within the industry.
“Maybe in the past eight years 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. It comes to me as Chinese whispers that they booked you but the music company went ahead and hired their five composers,” he said.
The remarks sparked widespread debate and criticism, prompting Rahman to issue a clarification a few days later, stating that his comments had been misconstrued.
