The English press hailed him variously, as the “Mozart of Madras” and “the other little Indian genius,” (the “other” in this case obviously putting him in the same league as Sachin Tendulkar). And the main hoarding at the theatre, where his musical was presented, read: “Andrew Lloyd Webber presents AR Rahman’s Bombay Dreams.”

Having taken London by storm, the Indian sensation, AR Rahman is now back. While in Mumbai on a brief stopover, en route to Chennai, Rahman and his Bombay Dreams teammate, choreographer Farah Khan were almost run over by a flood of soundbyte-hungry local presscorps at Insomnia, at the Taj Mahal Hotel. With characteristic modesty, a trait he no doubt shares with Tendulkar, Rahman reacted as if he didn’t understand what all the fuss was about.

Dressed casually in jeans and a loose-fitting dark shirt, Rahman seemed to make light of the sensation that Lord Webber’s musical has become in the UK, well, but for the rare aside about its weak script and “cheesy” dialogue. Farah chipped in to say, “We’re proud of Bombay Dreams, we wanted it to be everything the Mumbai film industry stands for and means.”

Rahman told us he was yet to sign another international venture after Bombay Dreams. “I don’t think I shall, at any rate not this year because I have a backlog of Hindi films to finish,” he said. But Lord Webber, we’re told, has requested that he collaborate with him on his next project as well.
The chat with the media over, they screened a 16-minute clipping from Bombay Dreams including scenes featuring heroine Priya Kalidas and Ayesha Dharker.