3 min readChennaiFeb 12, 2026 10:16 AM IST
AR Rahman recently became the centre of controversy after he spoke about the supposed ‘communal’ undercurrent in the industry and said that it was perhaps because of this that he wasn’t getting as much work in the film industry. Now, an old clip of Sonu Nigam has resurfaced, in which the singer spoke about how Rahman is “not a friendly person.”
In an earlier conversation with O2 India, Sonu said, “Rahman doesn’t have relationships. He is not the kind of person who has relationships. He doesn’t open up to anyone. At least, I have never seen that. Perhaps, he opens up in front of his older friends, who have known him as Dileep. But I haven’t seen him opening up or having any relationship with anybody. He is not a friendly person. He is just into his work.”
The singer recalled how his conversations with Rahman were limited to polite exchanges like ‘hi’ and ‘how are you?’ when they went on a US tour together. “He doesn’t know how to gossip, and that is not his drawback. This is how he is. He doesn’t want to know anything about me or anybody else, and he doesn’t want anybody else to know about him also. He is a unique personality,” he said.
Though to many, Rahman may seem distant, Sonu clarified that the composer is actually ‘detached’ and focused only on his work and prayer, which also makes him disinterested in other people’s affairs. He said, “He does his work and his prayer. He doesn’t behave badly with anyone. He will not hurt anybody’s heart. He won’t speak ill about anyone. He is detached to all of this. He must be attached to his family, but I haven’t seen him being very friendly with others.” Sonu further added, “He doesn’t let anyone come close to him. That’s how it should be.”
In a recent interaction with BBC Asian Network, Rahman spoke about the prejudice that exists in the Hindi film industry. “Maybe in the past eight years because a power shift has happened and people who are not creative have the power now. It might be a communal thing also… but it is not in my face. It comes to me as Chinese whispers that they booked you but the music company went ahead and hired their 5 composers. I say good, I have more time to chill with my family. I am not in search for work. I don’t want to go in search for work. I want work to come to me; my sincerity to earn work. Whatever I deserve, I get,” he had said.
