The filmmaker Imtiaz Ali has strongly backed the Oscar-winning composer AR Rahman, who has faced controversy over his recent statement that the music industry in Bollywood has fallen silent, a reason for the decline in Rahman’s work opportunities. Rahman’s comments during a BBC Asian Network interview on January 15, 2026, ignited a raging debate among the film fraternity.
Rahman, during the on-air conversation, stated that a shift in power over the past eight years has been from the inventive artists to the non-creative decision-makers. Though he never suffered from direct discrimination, Rahman talked about being informed through indirect means that a reduced number of his Bollywood projects could be attributed to communal bias. The remarks attracted a barrage of criticism from several industry giants, including actress and BJP MP Kangana Ranaut and veteran lyricist Javed Akhtar.
Imtiaz Ali, who has had a close working relationship with Rahman in the past, arising from the musical scores of popular movies, i.e., “Rockstar”, “Highway”, “Tamasha”, and “Amar Singh Chamkila”—told India Today on January 20, 2026, that he could not help but be supportive of his artist. Ali pointed out that, in his opinion, there is no communal bias in the movie world and cited his long professional life as proof, claiming that he had never even so much as heard of it in his lifetime. In the times of Rahman, he was one of the industry’s most brilliant personages.
Ali thinks Rahman’s quotes were misinterpreted. He even doubted that the entire comment attributed to Rahman was spoken by him, suggesting that the artist did not express himself in the same way the public is interpreting. Ali, while sharing more of his experiences, emphasised that throughout his extensive career, he has never witnessed a single incident of communal animosity in Bollywood.
As a result of the negative reaction, Rahman released a video statement on January 18, 2026, in which he assured that pain was never his intent. He remarked that through his music he would always uplift, honour, and serve, and reiterated that India is still his home and the source of his greatest inspiration. Furthermore, Rahman mentioned his active participation in the music scene, including his mentorship of the Sunshine Orchestra and his joint work with Hans Zimmer on the forthcoming movie Ramayana.
