The last few days, I’ve been stumped by the number of years that have passed since certain events. What numbers are we talking about?! How do double-digit numbers like this feature in my life?
Category: Music
Ponniyin Selvan’s songs and the joys of album listening
Stream of consciousness, slightly obsessive writing about music ahead. Do you listen to the soundtrack of a yet-to-be-released film and wonder how the songs will feature in the film?
When we used to buy music
My mind drifted to the whole idea of ‘buying’ music. There was a sense of dedication to that act; you bought a cassette or a CD out of commitment to an artist, a desire to experiment, or after having listened enough to an album or a song you knew that you needed it in your collection.
Ten Songs for Navaratri
This Navaratri, I sang a Carnatic song every day. This may have been my most regular singing experience in nearly 10 years, since I practiced with a group to put on a Hindi film classics concert in Singapore. I have a strained relationship with Carnatic music, having felt much pressure to perform well – whether…
Being a Committed Fan
Originally published here on Spark. In the concert film One Heart, AR Rahman refers to his fans who were five or six years old when he released his first couple of albums, and how the Intimate Concert series (which One Heart follows) is made up of songs for these fans, now in their late 20s – his earliest…
Live concerts, Clapton and discovery
I simply love concert versions of songs I like. There are magical new elements in these versions that make you fall in love with the song even more. The music is fresh, live, and there’s the joy of being part of an audience that is rediscovering the song with you. Among my favourites is Eric…
Rahman in St Petersburg
14 August 2019 Hello Rahman, Last night, I tried to explain your music to a couple of Russians in St. Petersburg. It came up because my partner tried to explain how religion had influenced your music so. We argued mildly about which should be the first song of yours we play to introduce you to…