Oscar-winning music composer A R Rahman, who recently made headlines over an interview where he said he is losing work in Bollywood due to alleged ‘communal’ bias, has said in a separate interview that he felt “gaslighted” by 1990s-generation listeners.

Rahman added he had deliberately increased his output in recent years to reconnect with younger audiences.

“For the past six years, to be frank, when people come to you, the 1990s generation have a certain nostalgia and affinity towards your music. The same goes for those born in the 2000s, and so on for those from the next decade. They come and gaslight you. They say, ‘In the ’90s, you did Roja (1992). That's very good music, sir’. That feels like now you're not doing good music, right? It actually harms your thinking if you're not in your best mood,” Rahman told The Hollywood Reporter in a recent interaction.

He said the perception pushed him to consciously take on more projects.

“So I thought, what if I go on a rampage and keep doing movies, song after song? So, every director who comes to me now says, ‘You’ve done such a great sequence in Mani (Ratnam) sir’s movie Thug Life. So, all the examples now are from the last six years. I’ve done 20-30 movies in the last six years. So, I’m safe now. I've got enough for the next generation. That was intentional,” Rahman added.

Rahman also spoke about his recent collaboration with Oscar-winning composer Hans Zimmer on the music for Nitesh Tiwari’s Ramayana, saying he does not want to become complacent and is focused on pushing his creative boundaries.

“I love that stuff, but within me, I need to get my self-esteem and confidence back, and prove myself. What I'm doing next is going to be the best thing. Not rely on the past, and be like, ‘Oh, I've two Oscars’. That thought drains you. You're not motivated to do anything. It can be a burden. It's not in my Twitter or Instagram bio—no Oscar, no Grammy, nothing. It's a fresh start, 2026,” Rahman said.