AR Rahman: I don't like the nickname 'Periya Bhai'

AR Rahman is busy with multiple releases and projects. In Tamil, he is awaiting the release of Thug Life, directed by Mani Ratnam and starring Kamal Haasan and Silambarasan in lead roles. As the film is scheduled to be released in theatres on June 5, Rahman opened up about the film, his equation with Mani Ratnam and why he doesn't like people on social media calling him 'Periya Bhai'.

In an interview with Behindwoods, AR Rahman was surprised to know that people call him 'Periya Bhai' on social media. When the anchor pointed this out to him, he said, "It's not needed. What is this 'Periya Bhai', 'Chinna Bhai'? Am I running a meat shop? I don't like it."

Speaking to Hollywood Reporter India, AR Rahman elaborated on his collaborations with Mani Ratnam. He stated that they stick to cinema and rarely indulge in backbiting or gossip. "I basically learnt to do this during the Ramadan fasting period; you aren’t supposed to speak ill of anyone in that month. But with every year, that practice got instilled in me over and over again, and now it's part of me," he said.

He further added, "Our exchanges are very short and to the point —'Can we change this?' 'That sounds great!' — and so on. But I keep pulling him aside from time to time to show him anything new I discover, like a new mixer, sound tech and so on, and he keeps asking me how I find the time to do this."

Mani Ratnam and AR Rahman have been collaborating for three decades. Thug Life reunites Kamal and Mani Ratnam 38 years after Nayakan. The ensemble cast of the film also stars Trisha, Ashok Selvan, Aishwarya Lekshmi, Joju George, Abhirami, Nassar, Mahesh Manjrekar, Tanikella Bharani, Vadivukkarasi, Chinni Jayanth, Vaiyapuri, Bagavathi Perumal, Baburaj, Ali Fazal, Rohit Saraf, Arjun Chidambaram, Chetan, and Rajashri Deshpande.

AR Rahman recently scored music for the hit Hindi film Chhaava, directed by Laxman Utekar. His upcoming projects apart from Thug Life include Lahore 1947, Tere Ishk Mein, Ramayana: Part 1, Peddi, Genie, Moon Walk and the untitled Dhanush 56, among others.