A special day for The Mozart of Modern Times

I wonder how much time has passed since I last heard a Rahman number? Hmmm that's hard to say since I'm not used to expressing time in milliseconds.Well,you get the gist;there's not a day that passes for me without experiencing(I don't call it listening;its too mediocre a word to be used in this context) a Rahman number.

What makes his songs so special?Why do I call myself a Rahmaniac and jump at the slightest mention of his name?I'd one of those rare introspections today and slowly came to realise that ARR's songs link to my memories and experiences.Thayya Thayya reminds me of my first train journey and my first cultural experience;Dil se re brings back memories of a stormy night with no electricity.That was the first time I used a walkman and the sound had me floating in ARR's ambience.Pachai Nirame is tied to that visit to Kodaikanal,with the song so beautifully blending in with the surroundings,attributing a sense of completeness to the moment.Columbus will be the souvenir I brought back from my standard 8 excursion;Thendrale from Kadal Desam is my first understanding of the pain in love.

Whenever I hear Chinna Chinna mazhai thuligal,I smile at the memory of me standing in the terrace one evening while it was raining cats and dogs.Thirakatha Katukkule was the first ARR number I heard and fell in love with-a love that would have no limits or end.Santhana Thendral is the one that reminiscences of my first keyboard,my tenth standard and...my first crush :)

This list has virtually no end,just like Rahman's music.I could go on and on like this and this post would therefore finish without my wishing ARR...Yeah,on this very day some 42 years back,the Mozart of Asia stepped into this world;I thank God for this beautiful gift to mankind;ARR is undoubtedly a legend who walks on this earth amongst us,with seemingly perfect notes flowing seamlessly from the very fibres of his musical being.

God bless you,Allah Rakha Rahman,on your birthday;may He give you a very long and blessed life.We Rahmaniacs will continue to bask in your music forever.

Always a Rahmaniac,

Sriram