No Shortcuts, Says AR Rahman in Response to ‘Masakali 2.0’

The original was composed by AR Rahman and sung by Mohit Chauhan for Rakyesh Omprakash Mehra’s film Delhi-6 (2009).

Sidharth Malhotra and Tara Sutaria, and AR Rahman.

(Photo Courtesy: YouTube Screengrab, Instagram)

Music composer AR Rahman has expressed his displeasure with the newly released track ‘Masakali 2.0’. In response to the release of the rejigged single, the music composer tweeted a link to the original composition, ‘Masakali’, a song he had created for Rakyesh Omprakash Mehra’s film Delhi-6 in 2009.

“Enjoy the original #Masakali,” wrote Rahman alongside the link to the video of the original. He also shared a picture of his statement which read, “No short cuts, properly commissioned, sleepless nights, writes and re-writes. Over 200 musicians, 365 days of creative brainstorming with the aim to produce music that can last generations. A team of director, a composer and a lyricist, supported by actors, dance directors and a relentless film crew.”

Lyricist Prasoon Joshi also took to Twitter to express his displeasure over the remake of the song. He said that it was sad to see the song being ‘insensitively utilised’ and that it was ‘up to the conscience of T-Series.’

“All songs written for #Delhi6 including #Masakali close to heart,sad to see when original creation of @arrahman @prasoonjoshi_ &singer @_MohitChauhan insensitively utilised. Upto the conscience of @Tseries. Hopefully the fans will stand for originality. @RakeyshOmMehra” he wrote.

‘Masakali 2.0’ has come in for criticism on social media for ruining the essence of the iconic original.

The song was picturised on Sonam Kapoor and Abhishek Bachchan. The film also starred Waheeda Rehman, Om Puri and Ajay Kulkarni.

In a interview with Mumbai Mirror, Tara had said that the song is “catchy” despite “being a midtempo tune.” Her co-star Sidharth Malhotra added that the creative team’s decision to shoot indoors is relevant during the lockdown.

With inputs from: Mumbai Mirror