A R Rahman To Be Honoured At Lakshminarayana Global Music Festival

Music composer A R Rahman will be honoured with the Lakshminarayana International Award this year, the organisers of the Lakshminarayana Global Music Festival announced on Monday.

Instituted to recognise outstanding contributions to the arts, the award will be presented to Rahman at a special ceremony on December 15, according to an official press release. The ceremony will also serve as the curtain-raiser to the 35th edition of the Lakshminarayana Global Music Festival and will take place at Rasika Ranjani Sabha.

A two-time Academy Award winner, Rahman is widely regarded as one of India’s most influential and celebrated music composers, credited with reshaping the sonic landscape of Indian cinema. Over the course of his career, he has sold more than 150 million records worldwide and composed over 100 film soundtracks and albums. His repertoire includes iconic films such as Roja, Bombay, Dil Se, Taal, Lagaan, Slumdog Millionaire and 127 Hours.

Trained in Western classical music at Trinity College, London, Rahman went on to establish Panchathan Record Inn in Chennai, one of India’s most technologically advanced recording studios. He made a landmark debut with Roja, which earned him the National Film Award , the first of seven National Awards, the highest number won by any Indian music composer.

Rahman is also a recipient of the Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan, and has won seven National Film Awards across categories including Best Music Direction and Best Background Score.

On the digital front, Rahman ranked as the fourth most-streamed artist in India on Spotify Wrapped 2025, while also securing the second position among Tamil artists. His most recent film album was for Aanand L Rai’s Tere Ishk Mein.