AR Rahman Says He Learned Hindi After Feeling Embarrassed by Poor Song Translations

Renowned singer-composer AR Rahman has scored music in a number of languages. He has also graced numerous hit Bollywood movies with his soundtracks. Recently, he let out the reasons for entering the Hindi film industry and also explained why he learned to speak Hindi. He learned Hindi on the advice of a director.

AR Rahman made his Bollywood debut with Ram Gopal Varma's film "Rangeela," starring Aamir Khan. According to AR Rahman, he learned Hindi for this purpose. In an interview with NDTV, hosted by Shruti Haasan, AR Rahman revealed that he felt embarrassed listening to his Tamil songs dubbed into Hindi with literal translations.

According to AR Rahman, "Every language has its own aura. When my films like 'Dil Se' and 'Roja' did well, people started translating Tamil songs literally. It was humiliating for me when people started making negative comments, saying, 'These Hindi lyrics are useless, we would rather listen to the Tamil version of the song.'" AR Rahman further explained that this situation arose when films in all three languages ​​were performing well at the box office. He said, "People saw the money. That's when I started focusing more on Hindi films instead of dubbing." The musician further said that after working in the industry for several years, he realized this.

He said, "I also learned a little Arabic from the Quran. Between 1994 and 1997, I spent time reading the Quran Sharif." Additionally, AR Rahman recalled that producer Subhash Ghai suggested he learn Hindi. Ghai advised him to learn Hindi to survive. AR Rahman considered this advice valuable. He said, "I took it seriously and learned Hindi and Urdu." He says that Hindi audiences worldwide have showered him with immense love. Now, he also enjoys Punjabi. On the work front, AR Rahman is composing music for Nitesh Tiwari's upcoming film, "Ramayana," in collaboration with Hollywood legend Hans Zimmer.