/> After the release of the premium soundtrack A R Rahman has been asked by Mani Rathnam to compose two more songs for Guru.

Explains Mani Rathnam, "The two songs are a part of the background score. It happens with AR and me in most of our scores. A songs sometimes adds so much to an emotion, it seems to have a direct connect with the viewer. In our collaborations the music just keeps flowing in. AR of course is magical. We should find a way to get these tracks on to the CD".

Says Rahman, "One of the new songs is sung by Soumya Rao. It will come in the second-half of the film, the other is in the nature of a thematic refrain ...a chant. I guess Mani saw the need to enhance the musical output. Yes, the numbers are not on the CD. But that should add to the expectancy level of the film, don't you think?"

Rahman started the year with Rang De Basanti and concluded it with Guru. "Both are totally different. RDB is more youth-oriented. Guru is more personality-oriented. RDB was a bigger challenge. It was a rotally new sound and we worked really hard to get it right.

In Guru Mani Rathnam and I have a track record. This is our ninth film together. Where does Guru belong? You never know how the audience reacts to a score!"

Rahman is selecting movie scores very carefully in Bollywood. "Better that way after what has happened to some of my best scores in recent times," laughs Rahman.

"Right now I'm working on Ashutosh Gowariker's Jodha-Akbar. I also have Shankar's Shivaji with Rajnikant in Tamil. It's one of my biggest projects. But that's it. I'd rather not do more film projects because I've the reputation of being tardy to live up to.

I also two albums ready for release on my own label. One is a Classical Hindustani album by Ghulam Mustafa Khan, his sons and students. The other is a more contemporary theme."

In the coming year Rahman has several international plans. "If the Oscar for my RDB and Water songs happens, I'll have to find time for things to do abroad. Then there's Mani's Lajjo which takes me to a totally different territory."