AR Rahman was born in a Tamil Hindu family. The singers parents named him Dilip Kumar but after conversion he changed his name from Dilip Kumar to Allahrakka Rahman. At the age of 23 the legendary music composer changed his religion but initially his family was against his decision. The family did not want him to accept Islam. Recently filmmaker Rajiv Menon who was close to AR Rahman throughout the journey spoke openly about his journey of conversion. The family was against AR Rahman While talking to O2 India Rajiv Menon said that he was the one who helped Dilip Kumar aka AR Rahman to convert to Islam. According to the filmmaker the fakir who made AR Rahman convert to Islam did not know Hindi. In such a situation Rajiv had to translate everything. He said There was a period they didn’t know Hindi so I would be the translator. I have seen this period of transition and gravitation towards religion and belief. I have seen Rahman deal with immense pressure from within the family especially with the marriages of his sisters. It was music that helped him brave the storm. He says that there was a lot of pressure on AR Rahman from the family. His family did not want him to convert from Hindu to Muslim. There would have been a lot of problems at the singers sisters wedding due to his conversion. All these things were putting a lot of pressure on the singer. Singer Rajiv Menon says that after changing his religion he felt closer to Allah. During that most difficult phase of his life the singers music helped him a lot. He says that the composer found solace in music during difficult times. He found solace and peace due to his relationship with music. His spiritual journey deepened his exploration of Hindustani music and qawwalis which further enriched his music. AR Rahmans journey was quite different from other music composers of the South because he was also very popular in the North. Recently AR Rahman was in the news regarding his health. The singer and composers health deteriorated due to which he had to be admitted to the hospital. However he fell ill due to dehydration and now his condition is better.