he said . But recently , he 's noticed a changing mood . `` Now it is becoming too abstract and more ambient and more ... I do n't know , soundscape-ish , more than melody . People are afraid of melody : ` Oh , that melody is distracting my scene , ' it is becoming like that . '' And that brings fresh challenges for the makers of film music . `` Now the challenges of the composer are much more , '' he told CNN . `` One needs to know of recording , production , it is not enough to compose a great theme and -LSB- know -RSB- how it can intertwine with the movie . And with Indian film it is an even greater challenge , because we need to be like Michael Jackson , John Williams , Hans Zimmer and an Indian folk composer all put together . So they expect finesse and they expect versatility . '' Rahman 's compositions are versatile enough to be used by both Bollywood and Hollywood , a case in point being his music for the Hindi film `` Dil Se , '' which was used almost a
LONDON , England -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- The Screening Room went to the Theatre Royal in Drury Lane in the heart of London 's West End , where a spectacular musical version of `` The Lord of The Rings '' is enjoying a successful run , to meet Indian composer A. R. Rahman , whose blend of Asian culture with rock and Western classical styles has revolutionized the Indian film industry . And now Rahman is about to make his mark in Hollywood . A. R. Rahman , interviewed by CNN 's Screening Room Virtually unknown in Europe and the U.S. , Rahman has sold 200 million albums worldwide -- more than the Beatles -- and is worshipped throughout much of Asia , where he 's known as the Mozart of Madras . Now he has added a Hollywood film score to his vast repertoire of movie music . Rahman explained to CNN what he thinks makes great movie music . `` A great soundtrack is like ` Laura `` s theme ' , the ` Love Story ' theme , ` Chariots of Fire ' and all those sorts of things , where it stood by itself , ''