When Ram Gopal Varma claimed that the Oscar winning song 'Jai Ho' was NOT composed by AR Rahman but Sukhwinder Singh, who got Rs 5 lakhs for it; the singer denied it

AR Rahman has been in the news for his 'communal' remark in a recent interview. The composer said that since the last eight years, he's getting less work in Bollywood and the reason for that could be that the industry is getting communal. He also called 'Chhaava' a divisive film but he feels honoured about scoring for a film based on Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj. While Rahman faced backlash on the internet, he later clarified his stance through a video and many celebs have also come to his defence. Meanwhile, amidst that, an old interview of Ram Gopal Varma has gone viral on the internet where the filmmaker who worked with Rahman on the iconic 'Rangeela' revealed that the Oscar winning track 'Jai Ho' was not composed by AR Rahman, it was made by Sukhwinder Singh.

In this old clip, going viral on the internet, RGV can be heard saying, "Rehman was doing a film called Yuvraj for Subhash Ghai. Rahman is notorious for delays. Subhash Ghai messaged Rahman. He said, I have dates for Salman Khan, Katrina Kaif. I have a set. If you don't give me songs, what will happen? He sent a very harsh mail to Rahman, he was in London at that time. So Rahman called and said, I'll come to Bombay. Come to Sukhwinder Singh Studio in Bombay. I'll come there and sing your song. He agreed and went to Sukhwinder Studio two days later. Rehman was still in Andhra at the airport. He was sitting in Sukhwinder and doing something. He asked him to sing a song. Subhash Ghai got angry. He thought he was making him sing for no reason. Rehman came and said, hi hi. asked Sukhwinder right in front of Subhash Ghai, 'Did you compose?' Sukhwinder said yes, played a song and Rahman said he liked it and asked if Subhash liked it. Subhash got angry and started shouting at Rahman saying' I'm paying you 3 crores for you to do it... I also can get Sukhwinder to do it, why do i need you?'






RGV further added, "Rahman replied to him, 'Mind your tongue. You're paying for my name, not for my work. Don't get confused. Do you know where I get the key parts? Do you know where I get your other films? My driver can do it, my maali can do it, I can buy it from someone, I can do anything. I'm giving you my name. Point no 1 You're paying me to say, Music by AR Rahman. Point 2, tell me if you like it or not. If you don't like it, I'll do another thing."

Further elaborating on what happened next, RGV said, "Rahman said this and then left for Chennai. Sukhwinder told me that Rahman later called him and asked him to complete the song and email it to him. That was it, then one year later Rahman's manager sent a cheque for 5 lakhs to Sukhwinder and then Sukhwinder asked why? The manager said, 'You made a song a song for Rahman and Rahman sold it to a party and this 5 lakhs is your share.' Who did Rahman sell the song to? Slumdog Millionaire. And the song Jai ho."





However, after Ram Gopal Varma made this revelation, Sukhwinder Singh had denied his claims and said that he had only sung the song and not composed it. In an interview with Hindustan Times, Sukhwinder had said earlier, “I have only sung it. Ram Gopal Varma ji koi chhoti hasti toh nahi hain, shayad unhe kuchh galat pata chala hoga. (Ram Gopal Varma is not a novice. He must have misunderstood something)." Get the latest entertainment updates from the Times of India, along with the latest Hindi movies, upcoming Hindi movies in 2026 , and Telugu movies.”