The Academy of motion picture arts and sciences have released a transcript of AR Rahman’s acceptance speech for the Oscar for best original song. The Academy shared the video on Twitter, featuring Rahman revisiting his victorious experience in 2009. He recalled that when his name was called for the first time, he expressed gratitude and spoke a line in Tamil, which translated into, “All perfect praise belongs to God alone.”
Rahman spoke in Tamil, saying, “All perfect praise belongs to God alone.” He added, “I wanted to remember the God who is common to all of us,” highlighting the ideal of unity and diversity the Oscars so often strive for. The moment was a special one, with the Oscars taking place as the world slid into an economic recession, making Slumdog Millionaire feel even more pertinent. “The essence of the film was optimism and hope,” said Rahman, adding, “all my life, I’ve had a choice of hate and love. I chose love, and I’m here. “Rahman said in the video, “Some people have misinterpreted that statement over some religion and this and that, which is untrue. This is the state of every artist in the world, making them the artist. They want to give, and love is about giving, not taking.”
India is once again in contention at the upcoming Academy Awards. Filmmaker SS Rajamouli’s RRR is nominated in the Best Original Song category for its famous track “Naatu Naatu,”. The documentary The Elephant Whisperers was selected in the Best Documentary Short Film category, and director Shaunak Sen’s All That Breathes was nominated in the Best Documentary Feature category.
