Vishal Chandrashekhar, the composer of Sita Ramam, discusses AR Rahman’s skills as a great mentor on his 56th birthday.
Despite being a well-known musician and singer, AR Rahman also has a reputation for being a mentor and a philanthropist. Vishal Chandrashekhar, the composer of Sita Ramam and a former pupil at Rahman’s KM Music Conservatory, discusses the lesser-known aspects of the musical legend.
What is there to say about someone who has already had everything written about them? What is there left to discover about a person whose career has already been thoroughly examined? What should one do now that everyone is aware of all the previously unknown information about him? What more is there to say about AR Rahman that hasn’t already been said? It appears to be a lot.
On his 56th birthday, we had a talk with Vishal Chandrashekhar, the outstanding record composer and KM Music Conservatory student who is responsible for such timeless albums as Sita Ramam and Jil Jung Jak. Vishal Chandrashekhar has been quietly giving back to society for years.
The conservatory, which was established in 2008, had a pilot batch that Vishal Chandrashekhar was a part of. Vishal had started writing songs even before he enrolled in AR Rahman’s one-year course, but he enrolled to deepen his knowledge of music. My principal was AR Rahman. For us to succeed in music theory and other areas, he provided a superb setting and faculty.
An area where you might encounter students with varied levels of strength is KM. Even though I had been writing music, my time spent there as a student helped me become more skilled.
According to Vishal, the day he presented Rahman with his research work was one of the apex moments of his life. “This was after I received my KM degree. I became aware of how masterfully Rahman had organized the course as I was working on my study because it was helpful.
So, five minutes after I emailed him to explain what I had done at 11.50 p.m., he answered at 11.55 p.m. with the words “it’s good.” His act was particularly noteworthy because it was all part of his effort to give back to society. Even now, Vishal treasures that response.
Vishal Chandrashekhar responds when asked to elucidate on how the conservatory is AR Rahman’s means of “giving back to society,” “See, it is something not everyone can envision doing. For instance, I have a large violinist recording with me. Additionally, they are all older than 45.
We musicians are aware of the gradual disappearance of the younger string players. With KM, he attracts a lot of musically talented but disadvantaged students and offers them free instruction. Very few people are aware. I am aware because I was present.
We won’t immediately experience the effects of all of this, he continues. But ten years from now, let’s say, we’ll realise it. He is building an orchestra that can compete with any orchestra from Budapest or Macedonia on the global stage. I’ve got the opportunity to record for Sita Ramam in Budapest and Chennai.
We and they both have a very different perception of music. Rahman is bridging that gap by developing young musicians who are equally adept at Western and Indian music. After ten years, you can see much more of what he has been doing. He has already given musicians here a tonne of opportunity.
“We say ilayaraja and AR Rahman are all like a huge sea, but after my research work and working experience, they are like the ocean,” concludes Vishal before signing off. Their music is so much more than we realize.