Mumbai: The new song from Nitesh Tiwari's Ramayana has been out for a day and it is already the most argued-about piece of music in the country.
Mangal Rang, which scores the wedding celebrations of Rama and Sita, is sung by Arijit Singh and Shreya Ghoshal, composed, produced and arranged by AR Rahman, and written by Kumar Vishwas. Within hours of its release, listeners on social media were pointing to what they heard as qawwali elements — the chorus, the "rang" metaphor, a guitar line — and arguing that the sound does not suit an epic set in the Ramayana. Some compared it to Rahman's own earlier work, including the Tamil song Enna Solla Pogirai and the Sufi track Kun Faya Kun.
Rahman's response, in an interview, was less a rebuttal than a shrug. "We do so much work, filtration, ideation, and iteration that there's no energy left to look at feedback! We just put it out because it's been tried and tested so much," he said. "My son keeps telling me, 'This is what they said yesterday, now they're apologising...' I say fine, I've done my work sincerely and hope people celebrate it."
He was referring to Ravana Tandav, an earlier track from the film that drew flak before some of the same voices turned appreciative.
Rahman said taking on the Ramayana three decades into his career came with its own weight. "After the first 10 years, people said, 'Oh, you should do what you did in those first 10 years.' But I can't stay on old glory like Rockstar or Slumdog Millionaire. You can't stagnate yourself — you have to be like a flowing river," he said. The songs, he added, are in five languages.
The project also broke his long-standing preference for composing alone. Rahman is working with Hans Zimmer, and he explained why that mattered for reasons beyond music: "If someone in New Zealand or Europe sees Hans Zimmer's name, they will watch. If they just see Indian names, they might think it's just another Indian movie." Zimmer had invited him to collaborate 14-15 years ago, right after the Slumdog Millionaire Oscar, he said, but he was in "chill-out mode" then.
Ramayana: Rise of a Legend stars Ranbir Kapoor as Rama, Sai Pallavi as Sita, Yash as Ravana, Ravie Dubey as Lakshman and Sunny Deol as Hanuman. Namit Malhotra produces. Part One releases worldwide on November 5, ahead of Diwali; Part Two is slated for Diwali 2027.
Rahman performs on his Wonderment Tour at Jio World Garden in Mumbai on November 1 and at Backyard Sports Club in Delhi on November 21.