Armaan Malik defends Ramayana song Mangal Rang from criticism, says interpretation of music is subjective

Responding to criticism of Mangal Rang’s supposed Sufi-qawwali influences, Armaan Malik said the team was focused on reflecting devotion and pure love.

The track Mangal Rang from the Ranbir Kapoor-starrer Ramayana became the subject of debate on social media. Several listeners questioned its musical treatment, arguing that the composition carries Sufi qawwali influences they felt were misplaced in a film based on the Hindu epic. Others compared it to AR Rahman's earlier tracks, such as Kun Faya Kun from Rockstar.

Singer Armaan Malik spoke about Ramayana song Mangal Rang row.

‘Listener interpretation of music is always going to be subjective’

While the Hindi version of the song is sung by Arijit Singh and Shreya Ghoshal, Armaan Malik has lent his voice to the Kannada version, titled Mangala Sangama, alongside Bela Shende. In a recent interaction with News18, Armaan spoke about the criticism surrounding the song and said that the interpretation of music is always subjective. Mangal Rang depicts the wedding of Lord Rama and Sita.

Speaking to News18, he said, “The entire music team was completely united in one single goal – ensure the sonic experience reflected the pure love and divinity portrayed onscreen by Ranbir (Kapoor) and Sai Pallavi. How a listener interprets the music is always going to be subjective and that’s the nature of art. But as an artist, my only focus was the deep devotion of the moment and ensuring we delivered that with the utmost respect.”

A dream come true for Armaan Malik

Armaan has long hoped to lend his voice to a song featuring Ranbir Kapoor. In previous interviews, he had spoken about wanting to sing for actors such as Ranbir and Shah Rukh Khan. With Mangala Sangama, one of those dreams has finally come true. Talking about it, he said, “It’s a huge personal milestone. We all grow up watching certain icons define cinematic romance and emotion, and Ranbir has undoubtedly been that figure for my generation. What makes this even more special is the journey behind it."

About Ramayana

Directed by Nitesh Tiwari and produced by Namit Malhotra, Ramayana stars Ranbir Kapoor as Lord Rama, while Sai Pallavi portrays Sita, and Yash plays Ravana. The film also stars Ravi Dubey as Lakshman and Sunny Deol as Hanuman. The film's music brings together AR Rahman and Oscar-winning composer Hans Zimmer.

The film, which is scheduled to release in cinemas worldwide on November 5, is also breaking box office records. The film's advance booking opened on Dussehra, a full 15 days before its global release and now, just two days ahead of its theatrical release, the film has crossed the ₹100-crore mark in worldwide pre-sales.