(2) A. R. Rahman was born asDileep Shekhar to R.K. Shekhar,a film-score composer andconductor for Tamil and Malayalamfilms. After his untimelyfather’s death, his spiritual-minded mother gainedimmense succourfrom a Sufisaintpeer Karimullah ShahQadri under whose influence,the mother-son duo convertedto Islam.