Bharat Bala Recalls AR Rahman Recording Vande Mataram At 2 AM: ‘Woke Up, Lit A Candle'
Filmmaker Bharat Bala revealed that AR Rahman made a separate studio to record the song.
AR Rahman's iconic 1997 rendition of Vande Mataram remains a classic hit to this day. Reminiscing about the old times, filmmaker Bharat Bala shared behind-the-scenes stories of recording this iconic track. Bala, who directed the music video, shocked fans as he revealed that AR Rahman recorded the track past midnight.
AR Rahman Recorded The Song At 2 AM
During an interview with The Lallantop, Bala revealed that AR Rahman made a separate studio to record the song. 'He made a separate studio on the second floor for this project. We were trying, but nothing was working out till six months," Bala recalled, sharing that one day AR Rahman woke up at 2 am and wanted to record the song.
'He suddenly woke up at 2 am. He made everything spiritual. He lit a candle that came from Ajmer Dargah and woke me up. He asked me to call the sound engineer, but there was no one," he added, revealing that he was the one who recorded the track with Rahman without anyone else present at the studio.
Bala further stated that Rahman wanted him to sit down with him and work on the song. 'I didn't want to take responsibility for recording in those 15 minutes. But nobody was there. He went into the recording studio and started singing. 'Maa Tujhe Salaam.' That emotion…I was in tears!" Bala narrated the whole event.
Filmmaker Bharat Bala's Vision Behind Vande Mataram Music Video
Bala was also seen sharing his thoughts behind making the music video. While talking about the song, Bala shared that he wanted to go for a more romantic vibe than making it purely patriotic. 'I wanted to make an idea called Vande Mataram, not just a music video," he stated, revealing that he worked on it for nearly six months.
'Uss zamaane mein vo All India Radio mein aata tha, ek purana sa scratch tha. There was no feeling as such; I wanted to change that. Even though we took the idea of creating that for India, we wanted to keep it romantic. It's a love song for your country, your mother. That's why it's much deeper and stays like that even today," he said.
Additionally, Bala confessed that there was no prior planning or storyboarding involved; he just wanted to capture the real people. 'I was clear about one thing: I will film with real people; there will be flags, and people of every village and landscape will be filmed artistically," he stated.
'Jahan bhi jayenge, ek bada jhanda rakhenge, logon ko ikkattha karenge, and we will shoot it. No makeup, no choreography, but it should be epic," Bala revealed about his vision. The music video was ultimately filmed within 20-25 days and was out in another ten days.
First Published:
July 26, 2025, 13:20 IST
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