AR Rahman was in the news recently due to his ‘communal’ remark. For those unaware, the composer had said in an interview that is getting less work in the industry since the last eight years and that could be due to the industry getting communal. Though, he added that he has personally not faced it but has heard about it through chinese whispers. Several industry celebs reacted to Rahman’s comment and many even defended him. Now in a recent interview, singer Anuradha Paudwal has come to his defence. In an interview with ANI, she said, “From what I know of AR Rahman is through his music. I have never met him personally, but his music tells that he is a very saintly person,” she said.Addressing the reports about Rahman’s supposed communal comments, Paudwal suggested that interviews are often structured to provoke sensational responses. “I have been in the industry, and I have seen that when any artist, not only AR Rahman, but when any artist sits for an interview, the interviewer usually likes to frame questions in such a way to incite their desired response. The media, the channels, they don’t like straight interviews. Because they want something else,” she stated.The ‘Nazar Ke Samne’ singer further emphasised Rahman’s immense contribution to the music world, asserting that he stands above such controversies. “AR Rahman has given us the greatest of numbers, and he is beyond all this. He has achieved so much. He is not at that stage where anybody can influence his career. That’s what I feel as a senior artist, he has done wonders with his songs. There is no meaning in it,” she added.Her remarks come after Rahman, in an interview with BBC Asian Network, mentioned that his work in the Hindi film industry had reduced in recent years, linking it to shifts within the industry over the past eight years. The interview sparked varied reactions from fans and prominent personalities alike, including Kangana Ranaut, Paresh Rawal, Ranvir Shorey, Subhash Ghai, and Shobhaa De.
