Double Oscar and Grammy-winning composer and musician A.R Rahman has landed on NZ shores for the first time, set to celebrate his 25-year career with his Kiwi fans on Friday.
He's the man who took home two of the eight Oscars won by Slumdog Millionaire. 'Jai Ho' was the joyous heart, soul and spirit of the Slumdog story, not only winning the Oscar for best song, but the Grammy as well.
And like the film, the song was a huge hit.
But this humble composer says it was a very collaborative process, working closely with the film's Oscar-winning director, Danny Boyle.
"When I made it, it was just 'Jai Ho' the chant... but when Danny came into the picture, he said, 'I know you love writing for strings, why don't you play some strings on it?'
"He had a lot of production ideas too," Rahman told Newshub.
"I wrote the whole music in two weeks. I never understood how this can make such an impact."
Already a prolific composer in India, Slumdog Millionaire gave him the opportunity to take his creativity onto the world stage. He was rewarded once again by Boyle, who asked him to come aboard his next film - 127 Hours.
Working alongside British singer song-writer Dido, their song 'I Will Rise' saw Rahman once again nominated for an Oscar.
Rahman says music is the one language that crosses all borders.
"I feel I'm really blessed, crossing over and catering to a whole new audience. Music is a language where you can do that very easily. I'm still exploring and finding things that can connect."
A.R Rahman will be live in concert at Spark Arena on Friday night.
Newshub
