Kamal Haasan, Silambarasan TR, and AR Rahman
| Photo Credit: @silambarasantrofficial/Instagram

Tamil star Silambarasan TR on Saturday revealed that music legend AR Rahman lent a helping hand when the former was going through a distressing time after the ‘Beep Song’ controversy in 2016. The actor said this while speaking at the audio launch of his upcoming film, co-starring Kamal Haasan, Thug Life.

“I have travelled quite a bit with him (Rahman), but I think the most important moment was when the ‘Beep Song’ was released. As you all know, it was a very difficult time for me. And during such a tumultuous time, we had to release a teaser. Initially, it had only a dialogue, but Rahman sir cancelled his travel plans and decided to score music for the teaser. That’s how the song ‘Thalli Pogathey’ was released. I will never forget that and all that you have done for me, sir,” said Simbu, before thanking the composer for being the first, other than his father T Rajendar, to give him an opportunity to sing in films.

“Also, after I stepped out and started making movies with directors other than my father, it was Rahman sir who gave me my first opportunity to sing. Since then, I have sung over 150 songs in Tamil, Malayalam, Telugu and Hindi,” added Simbu.

The ‘Beep Song’ controversy that Simbu mentions in the speech emerged in 2015, over an allegedly leaked soundtrack that the star had sung. The track, rumoured to have been composed by Anirudh Ravichander, contained expletives that were masked by a beep sound. The track drew flak from women’s rights groups who said that the track was derogatory towards women.

While Anirudh denied his involvement in the composition of the track, Simbu argued that the track was for his own personal consumption and that it was illegally leaked to the public. FIRs were filed, protests were held, and the controversy made the headlines for months. While appearing before the Coimbatore City police in late February 2016, Simbu stated that he had composed the song long ago when he was suffering from a breakup; the star also added that Anirudh had no role in the composition of the track.

Notably, the audio teaser of ‘Thalli Pogathey,’ a hit song from the star’s film with Gautham Vasudev Menon, Achcham Yenbadhu Madamaiyada, was released on YouTube in January 2016. The song turned out to be a chartbuster, garnering over 75 million views on YouTube. The song turned the tables for Simbu and generated a lot of hype for Achcham Yenbadhu Madamaiyada.

Meanwhile, Silambarasan, currently awaiting the release of Thug Life, is working on his next film, STR 49, co-starring Santhanam. The film, directed by Ramkumar Balakrishnan, was launched earlier this month. The star has also teamed up with Desingh Periyasamy and Dragon-maker Ashwath Marimuthu for his subsequent films.