Michael Jackson Almost Had a Song for Rajinikanth's Robo

A special musical collaboration between AR Rahman and Michael Jackson was once planned for Rajinikanth's blockbuster film Enthiran. The song, however, never became a reality because of Michael Jackson's sudden death in 2009.

Composer S Thaman recently spoke about this interesting story during an interview. He revealed that AR Rahman had planned to create a song with the global pop icon for the film. According to Thaman, the two had even discussed the collaboration and were working towards making the song.

“For Robo, Rahman had planned a single with Michael Jackson. They met and discussed the song. Unfortunately, Michael Jackson passed away in June that year,” Thaman said.

Thaman also expressed his feelings about the missed opportunity. He said that the collaboration could have created a once-in-a-lifetime musical memory.

The story goes back to 2009, when AR Rahman was enjoying worldwide attention after his work in Slumdog Millionaire. He had won two Academy Awards for the film and later met Michael Jackson in Los Angeles.

Rahman had previously spoken about his meeting with Jackson. The two reportedly discussed music and world peace. Jackson also spoke about the possibility of creating another project similar to We Are the World.

After returning to India, Rahman shared details of his meeting with director Shankar. The director then asked whether Michael Jackson could sing a song for their upcoming film Enthiran.

Rahman was also surprised by the idea and wondered if Jackson would be willing to sing a Tamil song. However, Jackson was reportedly open to the possibility of working with Rahman.

The plan became even more exciting because Enthiran featured Rajinikanth in the lead role and was one of the biggest Indian films of that period. A song featuring Rajinikanth, AR Rahman and Michael Jackson could have become a major global attraction.

Sadly, the plan could not move forward after Michael Jackson died in June 2009. Enthiran eventually released in 2010 and became a major success. AR Rahman later continued his association with Shankar and Rajinikanth through the sequel 2.0.

Even years later, the story of the planned Rahman-Michael Jackson song remains one of the most interesting “what if” moments in Indian cinema and music.