The music never stops in this AR Rahman library in Mumbai

Mumbai: The Mozart of Madras now has a home in Mumbai, and you can visit it whenever you wish. Apart from being a place to delve into the life and works of India’s best-known music composer, AR Rahman, the 3,000 sq-ft space in Vasai also doubles as a resource centre for underprivileged students to mirror the legendary musician’s altruistic side.

The AR Rahman Library and Gallery houses a life-size painting of Rahman in Bollywood-poster style, three albums of the Oscar winning composer’s pictures, a large repository of newspaper and magazine articles, an audio-cassette collection, and about 20 frames capturing Rahman in various moods.

Six months old, the library has been created by Santosh Kumar Pandey, 28, a Vasai resident and an ardent Rahman fan. In fact, such is his adoration for his guru, that Pandey has also embraced Islam, “just like Rahman sir”.

Located in a flat in Rashi Residency housing society in Vasai (East), the space has been donated by Yogesh Bosmiya, who is the director of the society. Bosmiya agreed to Pandey’s request of creating the library after being impressed by the latter’s years-long dedication to the subject.

The Vasai youth’s admiration for Rahman began with the 1994 film Roja’s soundtrack. “I was blown away by the music. It was so divine and soulful, it touched my heart,” said a mesmerised Pandey, dressed in a white kurta, attar-soaked cotton tucked in his ears, and his surma-lined eyes gleaming at the mention of the name of his guru.

In the 16 years since, Pandey has kept track of everything Rahman. “I used to segregate clippings and articles on various topics at night, and would then cut and stock them categorically the next day,” Pandey said.