Khatija Rahman to make her international debut as film composer in ‘Lioness’

Chennai: Music maestro A.R Rahman’s daughter Khatija Rahman is now set to make her international debut, as she will compose the soundtrack for the film ‘Lioness’, which is an India-UK co-production directed by filmmaker Kajri Babbar.

Making her debut as a film composer in the upcoming Tamil film ‘Minmini’ which is currently in-the-works, Khatija released her first single ‘Farishton’ in 2020, which was composed and produced by her Oscar-winning father.

She later featured on Grammy Award-winning composer and environmentalist Ricky Kej’s song ‘Iltaja’ and collaborated with Tamil rapper-playback singer Arivu on his track ‘Sagavaasi’.

‘Lioness’ is a drama film centered around the lives of two completely different women who lived a 100 years away from each other, according to Variety.

The first story revolves around the suffragette (women’s protest for the right to vote) by Princess Sophia Duleep Singh, the granddaughter of the legendary king Maharaja Ranjit Singh and the god-daughter of Queen Victoria, which will be played by Paige Sandhu.

The second story introduces a fictional character, Simranjeet Kaur, living in London’s Southall Asian suburb in the early 1990s, to be played by Aditi Rao Hydari.

Speaking to the outlet, Khatija said: “Thrilled and honoured to be a part of ‘Lioness.’ I connected deeply with the film’s values from the moment I heard its compelling story and the reason behind bringing her story to life. Our aspiration is to ensure that Princess Sophia’s struggle receives the long-overdue recognition it truly deserves.”

A.R Rahman told Variety: “I’m always proud of her. She is herself. She’s not under the shadow of me or anything. She never played any song to me. And I didn’t even ask her. So she released it (‘Sagavaasi’) and then people sent me the song. And it’s doing well now, it’s number six on the charts. I think we’re in for surprises, what she’s gonna do”.

The upcoming singer-composer was noted for opting to wear the niqab on her own.

Talking about this, A.R Rahman said: “She has a very strong mind. And she’s a rebel. What she has done by wearing the niqab, standing for it and standing for all the people who wear the niqab as a statement – she got more attention than not wearing it.”

‘Lioness’ will commence production in the first quarter of 2024, with a global release planned for early 2025.

IANS