AR Rahman Says His Mother Kept His Oscar, Golden Globe Statuettes ‘Wrapped In Towel’, Says She Thought ‘It Was Gold’

AR Rahman, who has spent three decades in the industry, has bagged two Oscars, two Grammys, a BAFTA, and a Golden Globe.

AR Rahman says his mother keeps his international awards wrapped in a towel. ( Image Source :Instagram (arrahman) )

Indian music composer AR Rahman, who has spent three decades in the industry, has bagged several awards in his career. Rahman was recently asked where he keeps all his awards, and he shared that his mother keeps his international awards wrapped in a towel. 

In a conversation with Film Companion, the composer revealed that his late mother, Kareema Begum, stored all awards because she thought they were made of gold. 

AR Rahman says his mother kept his awards wrapped in a towel

“I have kept the international awards in Dubai because it was wrapped in a towel. My mom wrapped it in a towel. She thought it was gold. So after she passed away, I went to her room, took them out and I gave it to the Dubai Firdaus studio. It’s in the Firdaus studio in a nice showcase," Rahman said. 

AR Rahman has bagged two Oscars, two Grammys, a BAFTA, and a Golden Globe for the Danny Boyle directorial film Slumdog Millionaire. He won awards for the song ‘Jai Ho’, sung by Sukhwinder Singh and written by Gulzar. Besides the international accolades, Rahman has also won six national awards and more than 32 Filmfare awards. 

AR Rahman has a special room for his awards

The music composer also revealed in the same interview that he keeps the Indian awards in a special room. "Some of them haven’t come to me. I think some of the directors have kept them like a souvenir," he added.

In a chat with Netflix India, Rahman shared how his mother stood beside him during tough times. “When I built my studio, I didn’t have money to buy an amplifier or equaliser. There was just an AC with a shelf and carpet. I used to be sitting there not having money to buy anything. I built this and was sitting inside with no equipment. My first recorder came after my mom gave her jewels to be pledged. That is when I felt empowered. I could see my future, that one moment I changed,” he said.

AR Rahman recently collaborated with Imtiaz Ali for the movie 'Amar Singh Chamkila'. The Netflix film stars Diljit Dosanjh and Parineeti Chopra in lead roles.