'So far so good' for "Slumdog" composer A.R. Rahman

By Shilpa Jamkhandikar

MUMBAI (Reuters Life!) - He is the first Indian composer to get a Golden Globe nomination and there's an Oscar buzz around his score in "Slumdog Millionaire", but A.R. Rahman is unfazed by talk of awards.

"The more you expect, the more frustration comes," Bollywood's most famous musician said when asked if the thought of holding an Oscar statuette had crossed his mind.

"It'll be a surprise if it comes but so far so good," Rahman said in a telephone interview.

Known for his musical versatility -- from romantic compositions to foot-tapping numbers, Rahman has innovated with different instruments and sounds to create some of India's best-known musical hits for nearly two decades.

Despite earlier international credits such as the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical "Bombay Dreams", it is Rahman's work on British director Danny Boyle's "Slumdog" that endeared him to Western critics.

The film, nominated for four Golden Globes, is about an orphan from a Mumbai slum who gets a shot at winning millions on the Indian version of the television game show "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire".

"I just did the score because I liked Danny Boyle and because it's (about) India, so I thought it would be good to be associated," the 42-year-old composer said.