Living his humility once again, Oscar winner A R Rahman in a candid admission credited his colleague from Danny Boyle's `Slum Dog Millionaire', Frieda Pinto for bagging him a plum assignment in Hollywood: Julian Schnabel's controversial film `Miral'.In an industry plagued with insecurity and ingratitude, Rahman's admission comes as a fresh whiff of air. "It was sweet of Freida to recommend me to Julian Schnabel for Miral. I really mean it," he said and added further, "I was very keen to write something new for the film, but Julian insisted that I use `The Bombay Theme' track, and track from He Ping's `Warrior of Heaven and Earth'. He said no one's heard it there and it'll be loved by the audience there".
The story of an orphan (Pinto) growing up in the troubled border of Israel and Palestine has courted controversy from the beginning and the recent murder of its star Julian Mer-Khamis saw it grab headlines. A number of Jewish groups have asked for a ban on the film, including asking the UN not to show it at a planned screening.
However, Miral has found supporters in Hollywood superstars Johnny Depp and Javier Bardem. They called it unique and courageous glimpse into one woman's painful journey.