A. R. Rahman is the man who has redefined contemporary Indian music, is the pride of the Indian nation and a role model for millions around the world. Rahman, hailed by time magazine as the "Mozart of Madras', is one of the most successful artistes of all time and according to a BBC estimate, has sold more than 100 million albums of his works comprising of music from movies. In 1991, noted filmmaker Mani Ratnam offered Rahman a movie "Roja' which was a run-away success and brought nationwide fame and acclaim to the composer. The movie also led Rahman to receive the Indian National Award for the Best Music Composer, the first time ever by a debutant. Time magazine rated the soundtrack of "Roja' in their top ten compilation of the all time 100 best movie soundtracks of the world. Rahman is widely considered as the man who single-handedly revived public interest in Indian film music in the nineties. Rahman followed up "Roja' with "Gentleman', "Thiruda Thiruda', "Kaadhalan', "Bombay' and "Minssara Kannavu' all of which were huge chartbusters and were dubbed in Hindi as well. Some of the other hits in Tamil include 'Alaipayuthey', "Kandukondein Kandukondein', "Jeans', "Mudalvan', "Kannathil Muthamittal' & "Boys'. His foray into Hindi movies started off with a big bang with "Rangeela' followed by "Dil Se', "Taal', "1947 Earth', "Pukar', "Lagaan' , "Zubeida', "Meenaxi', 'The Legend of Bhagat Singh', 'Yuva', 'Tehzeeb' 'Swades', 'Bose: The Forgotten Hero', 'Water' and "Rang De Basanti' all of which have been critically acclaimed and well received. In 2001, Andrew Lloyd Webber, the well known composer of musicals like 'Phantom of the Opera', 'Cats', 'Jesus Christ Superstar' etc., invited Rahman to compose for the musical, "Bombay Dreams'. The first time he would produce a musical he did not compose for. Bombay dreams opened to packed houses at London's West End. The show had an unprecedented run for 2 years and later premiered at New York's Broadway. Rahman also composed the score for a Chinese film, "Warriors of Heaven and Earth' and a piece for the award winning violinist-musician Vanessa Mae called 'Raga's Dance. His most recent work was for the stage adaptation of J R R Tolkien's 'Lord Of The Rings' that premiered in Canada in 2006 and in London in 2007. The 'Bombay Theme' from the movie 'Bombay' features was most prominently noticed in the movie "Lord of War' starring Nicholas Cage. The track, 'Chaiyya Chaiyya' from the movie "Dil Se' features in the Spike Lee movie, 'Inside Man', starring Oscar winner, Denzel Washington. Rahman has won 18 Filmfare Awards, 3 MTV Awards, 4 IIFA Awards, 6 Tamil Nadu State Awards, 6 Zee Awards, 4 Screen Awards and lots more. He has also been conferred the restigious 'Padmashree', the highest civilian honour in India by the Government of India in the year 2000 for outstanding contribution to the Indian film industry.