Music Review-Agneepath

Year 2005.I was browsing through some audio cassettes when I spotted the audio cassette of 'Viruddh'.Even if I did not feel like buying a particuar cassette,I would carefully read all that's written (credits) on the front side and back side of the inlay card of that cassette.I wanted to know who are the singers,is there any guest composer/lyricist-everything.Ajay-Atul were credited for a supposedly devotional song in the album called 'Shree Ganeshay Dheemahi'.Later that year,I found them to be credited as composer for 'Hanuman Chalisa' in the audio cassette of another Mahesh Manjrekar directed film 'Vaah!Life Ho To Aisi',which otherwise had rest of the songs composed by Himesh Reshammiya.Years later,I got to know that they had become big names in Marathi cinema.Earlier this year,I immensely liked their first solo Hindi film soundtrack for 'Singham',which despite the humungous success of the film,could not get the popularity it deserved.I liked the heavy Indian orchestration which they had used for the songs in the film,used by very few like Ismail Darbar.Sadly,one gets to hear very little of that sound these days.When I heard they were composing for Karan Johar's interpretation of Mukul Anand's 'Agneepath',I felt elated.Given Karan Johar's penchant for quality music and the extremely talented Amitabh Bhattacharya,who right from  Aamir(2008) to Ladies Vs. Ricky Bahl(2011) has proved his mettle as a lyricist in each and every song that he has written ,I was sure that it would be a fabulous soundtrack.So,let us see what the soundtrack offers!

The album starts off on a promising note with 'Chikni Chameli',which one hears is a rehash of one of Ajay Atul's earlier Marathi hits.It is,undoubtedly,one of the better composed 'tem numbers in recent times,what with Ajay Atul's heavy orchestral arrangements (which carry a certain Marathi flavour) adding a class feel to it,rather than giving it a massy 'dhin-chak' feel.Shreya Ghoshal brings a certain naughtiness to her voice which works well for the song.Amitabh Bhattacharya's lyrics are as always brilliant.There is fun throughout the song and not once does one feels that the song crosses that thin line of decency.The song has already gained gained some fair amount of popularity what with Katrina Kaif gyrating to the song in the video.

The second song 'O Saiyyan' ,sung by the ever so dependable Roop Kumar Rathod,is extremely soothing.One sees Amitabh Bhattacharya indulging in some heavy poetry which one earlier witnessed in 'Udaan'.The musical arrangements are very simple and the instruments used are minimal.The song has a slow pace to it but has the merits to become popular once its video hits the airwaves.

The third song 'Gun Gun Guna' adds futher variety to the album,with it being a uplifting song with light musical arrangemts,again carrying a marathi flavour to them.The song is well tuned and the contrasting vocals of Sunidhi Chauhan and Udit Narayan are good to listen to.Amitabh Bhattacharya's lyrics reminds one of Gulzar's style of poetry.The song does not fall into the same bracket as the previous two numbers but is good nevertheless.However,it would need some really arresting visuals to ensure its pouplarity.

The fourth song 'Shah Ka Rutba' is a situational track.One is really doubtful about the commercial viability of this song but one has to give it to Ajay Atul for the wonderful musical arrangements that they have managed to provide for the song.Coming to the lyrics-it's one of the best written songs in recent times.Amitabh Bhattacharya needs to be given the opportunity to write for such huge commercial films apart from writing for somewhat urban films that does not necessarily give the wordsmith the space to write 'high- brow' poetry.The songs sees three powerful singers coming behing the mike in the form of Sukhwinder Singh,Krishna and Anand Raaj Anand.This is,perhaps,the second film in which Anand has sung for another composer(the other one being 'Billo Rani' from Goal composed by Pritam).

The fifth song 'Abhi Mujh Mein Kahin' sung by Sonu Nigam gives one reason to smile as it comes after two not-so-happening songs.Ajay Atul had said in an interview that it's a song which describes the relationship shared by Vijay(Hrithik Roshan) and his sister in the movie.'Abhi Mujh Mein Kahin' is a wonderful composition and although it reminds one of 'O Saiyyan',it has its own place in the album.One last heard Sonu in the good but unnoticed Sharib Toshi composition 'Aap Ki Aahat'(Lanka) and one only hopes that  this song gets the popularity that it deserves.

The sixth and the last song in the album is a devotional song called 'Deva Shree Ganesha' sung by Ajay Gogavale.Ajay Atul had earlier composed a devotional song 'Shree Ganeshay Dheemahi' for 'Viruddh' but while the number from Vruddh was quite slow in pace and soothing,this one is very loud and energetic in nature.The song works well with the mood of the film and is expected to add further drama in the narrative.

Overall,Agneepath is a good album but definitely way below expectations,thanks to the situational appeal of a few songs but one can't really blame the composers as one can understand they had to work under the boundaries around which the script was made.'Chikni Chameli' is already a hit and 'Abhi Mujhme Kahin','O Saiyyan' are expected to gain popularity too.As for the rest of the songs,their popularity purely depends upon their picturisation and then,the kind of run that the film manages to have at the box office.

Movie Review-Ladies Vs. Ricky Bahl

Watching a film in a single screen,amidst the 'seetis'.'taalis' and howling is a novel experience.Usually I visit the state capital(Bhubaneswar) on weekends to catch a movie but this time around,I decided to watch this  
yrf film in a local theatre.
          With a mixed feeling of hesitation and excitement,I barged into the theatre with a crowd of around 60 people.Finally,the movie started and the over enthusiastic movie lover in me took over the timid guy who was feeling uncomfortable as hell among a crowd of wayward rookies.
         The movie opens with debutante Parineeti Chopra trying to adjust her 'choli' to show some cleavage,so that her 'munda' Sunny(also her fitness trainer) would fall for her completely when he sees her and would get hanky-panky(read:intimate) with her.Soon enough Sunny dwindles away her father's money,leaving the poor girl heart broken.
         The con-man further charms and, then robs, two more ladies-Raina(played by Dipannita Sharma Atwal)-a feisty and successful corporate woman from Mumbai and Saira(played by Aditi Sharma)-a young widow who lives with her loving in-laws in Lucknow,out of their money.
        The three ladies come together and hire a sassy salesgirl Ishika(played by Anushka Sharma) to 'con' the 'Bloody Kameena',the name by which they decide to refer to the con-man whose real identity is still unknown.
            Together,they head off to Goa,where the con-man is looking for his next prey.Ishika befriends the con-man,who introduces himself as Vikram Talwar and makes him believe that she would be making a multi crore investment,in which she would like him to be a partner of.The,otherwise,smart player,falls for her story.What happens next forms the crust of the story.
            The writing(Habib Faisal and Devika Bhagat) is consistent,more so towards the second hour.Habib Faisal's dialogues are a major asset.Maneesh Sharma's direction is quite good.He has made a conscious effort to make each and every reel look different from that of his earlier film-Band Baaja Baaraat.Salim-Sulaiman's music is tuneful but not as impressive as some of their last releases(Love Breakups Zindagi,Band Baaja Baaraat).The trance number 'Fatal Attraction' is appropriately placed in the narrative.The choreography of the songs(Vaibhavi Merchant and Shruti Merchant) is first rate.Aseem Mishra wonderfully captures the beautiful locales which the film has been shot in.
          Parineeti Chopra is the star of the show.She has wonderful screen presence and acts with supreme confidence.She,in my opinion,is the find of 2011.Dipannita Sharma Atwal is fairly good.Aditi Sharma brings just the right amount of innocence to her character.Anushka Sharma looks dazzlingly beautiful and as always,acts confidently(almost went deaf on hearing the loud whistles and howling that accompanied her bikini act).Ranveer Singh  doesn't impress as much as he did in his debut  film.One missed the raw energy that suits him so well.He tries too hard to look sophisticated and cool but succeeds only to a certain extent.
          Overall,Ladies vs. Ricky Bahl is a fairly enjoyable entertainer that definitely desrves a watch.The ones expecting another 'Band Baaja Baaraat' would be disappointed.

Mausam-music review

Pankaj Kapur has been an actor who has always done the right films and chosen the right kind of roles.He also delivered sparkling performances in television shows like 'Office Office','Karamchand',among others.So when a quality conscious actor makes his directorial debut,the promos of which compel you to hit the replay button on their youtube page,the least that you can expect from the music is it to be good.Honestly,I was not too happy when I got to know that Pritam would be composing for the movie because Pritam can hardly qualify as one of my favourite composers.As for the lyricist, Irshad Kamil had some good with composer Sandesh Shandilya in films like 'Chameli', 'Socha Na Tha' and that wonderful album 'Ustad and The Divas'.I didn't quite approve of his more popular work in ‘Jab We Met','Love Aaj Kal' and 'De Dana Dan'. But I was quite taken aback by his work in the recently released 'Mere Brother Ki Dulhan'. Okay,let's get back to 'Mausam' and see what is in store for the listeners.

The album kick starts with 'Rabba Main Toh Mar Gaya Oye'. The song is sung by newcomer Shahid Mallya who sounds like a Roop Kumar Rathod clone. Honestly, I feel that Rathod's voice would have suited this much more than it suits Mallya's. Nevertheless,Mallya does a good job in singing  this one. The song has a semi classical base to it with some western arrangements (which I think was absolutely unnecessary) thrown in to give it a ''today's feel''. The song is very easy on the ears and has already become very popular thanks to some aggressive promotion on air.

The song that follows next is called 'Saj Dhaj Ke' and is sung by Mika.Mika and Pritam and you know that you can expect an out and out commercial number. And as the a large portion of the movie is set in Punjab,so one can't really do without a Bhangra number,can one?Mika,as always,does a brilliant job in rendering this high energy track.The song lacks novelty but one does not need complain as it has enough 'tashan' to entertain you throughut its duration.

The next track is called 'Ik Tu Hi Tu'. The song takes you aback completely as this song in so not Pritam. This one can be easily classified as one of the best sons composed by Pritam ever. Pritam truly comes out his comfort zone and delivers something which is extremely classy and at same time very commercial in nature. Rendered excellently by Hans Raj Hans. This would be Hans Raj Hans second song in a Hindi film his year after 'Tumba  Tumba'(Patiala House).How one wishes that the talented singer sings more for Hindi movies. The songs tells of seperation and longing and narrates the pain that Shahid's character in the movie goes through.It's easily one of the best songs that had come out this year.Irshad Kamil's lyrics deserve special mention. He balances Hindi and Punjabi words and weaves them together into writing a song that truly touches your heart. This one can,well,be the 'Tu Jaane Na'(Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani) of 2011.

The title of the next song,Poore Se Zara Sa Kam Hain Hum,catches your attention instantly. Second sad song in a row after 'Ik Tu Hi Tu' ,'Poore Se Zara Sa Kam Hain' is far more intense than the former.Ustad Rashid Khan, who apart from developing a fan base among the true blue Indian Classical music fans, has wooed Bollywood music fans by his soulful renditions in films like Jab We Met(Aaoge Jab Tum) and My Name Is Khan (Allah Hi Rahem) comes behind the mike to sing this song which has some heart wrenching lyrics by Irshad Kamil. Irshad Kamil truly proves his mettle as a lyricist with this song. If one goes by the popularity of the earlier film songs rendered by Ustad Rashid Khan,this one well can be his third hit!

The next song,'Aag Lage Us Aag Ko' has been sung and composed by guest composer Karsan Sargathiya. I have been a huge fan of Sargathiya ever since I heard 'Mehboob Mere' from Fiza-In Search Of His Brother(2000).The highly underrated singer has mostly been used as a back up/background vocalist and very rarely given the opportunity to deliver something of his own. While he does a brilliant job in singing this 'Garba' type number, one can't expect the song to go a long distance in the popularity race, as it reminds one of numerous such songs we have heard on 'Navratri'

and occasionaly in films and television shows. One can expect the song to arrive at an important juncture in the movie, a kind of situation in which both the lovers meet after a long time or even reunite. One would have to wait for the movie's release to find that out.

The last original track to arrive is called 'Mallo Malli',sung by Tochi Raina. This song actually disappoints you after hearing four superb (and entertaining) tracks from the album. Infact one wonders ,if the song was actually recorded for this film. The song reminds of you of hundreds of similiar sounding songs composed by Pritam. One actually ends up thinking that this would be one of the unused tracks by Pritam which have been lying in his library from a long time and he used it for ‘Mausam’ after doing some last minute snazzy arrangements to it. Not that the song is bad, but it does no good to an album filled with gems. It's, however, refreshing to hear Tochi Raina's voice instead of Neeraj Shridhar who is fast becoming a regular choice when it comes to rendering such songs. This one is average.

There is the reprise version of "Ik Tu Hi Tu' sung this time by Shahid Mallya who does a good job overall. Reprise version of "Rabba Main To Main Mar Gaya' has Rahat Fateh Ali Khan behind the mike who, obviously,does better than Mallya. Having said that,Shahid Mallya's apparently younger voice suits Shahid Kapur more than Rahat.The ‘Mehfil Mix’ version of ‘Ik Tu Hi Tu’ is sung by Wadali Brothers. It would be their second Hindi film song this year after ‘Rangrez Mere’(Tanu Weds Manu).One would love to see them coming behind the mike more often for film songs.

Coming to the remixed tracks,there are two remix versions of ‘Sajh Dhaj Ke’.Although both ‘Desi Mix Tiger Style’ and ‘Club Mix Tiger Style’ are well done remixes,I would prefer  the former as it accentuates the ‘desipann’ of the song without taking anything away from it.

There is another version of ‘Mallo Malli’ sung by Lehmber Hussainpuri who had already two hits this year with ‘Saddi Galli’(Tanu Weds Manu) and Bhoot Aaya (F.A.L.T.U),and the inimitable Hard Kaur.There is no difference between the Tochi Raina version and this one except for the singers. The remixed version is good too.

Overall,Mausam is one of the most satisfactory soundtracks to have arrived this year and undoubtedly one of the best original works by Pritam.Save for an average ‘Mallo Malli’and a good ‘Saj Dajh Ke’ the soundtrack is filled with gems that are bound to find a lot of respect among the quality conscious listeners in times to come.(P.S.Just hope nobody comes up claiming the rights for any of the songs as it has happened with many of Pritam’s earlier acclaimed works).

Overall rating-3.5 /5

Mere Brother Ki Dulhan-music review

There are always high expectations from the music of a film which comes from the stable of one of India's leading production houses-Yash Raj Films.Add to it,if the film has some top rung stars in the form of Katrina Kaif and Imran Kaif,one expects nothing but an out and out commercial soundtrack.Sohail Sen started out with 'Sirf',which was an absolutely forgettable soundtrack.He bounced back with Ashutosh Gowariker's 'What's Your Raashee' which had as many as thirteen songs.Sohail proved his versatility as a composer by experimenting with various genres of music with this album and managed to impress in a big way.After that,he scored the music of Gowarikar's period drama 'Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey'.Although the film didn't had much scope for music,he still managed to compose some soul stirring songs for the film.Sadly,both the above mentioned albums,though critically acclaimed,couldn't click with the listeners due to almost nil promotion of the songs.Although the music of 'Mere Brother Ki Dulhan' has released after three weeks since the movie's promotion has started,it can well act as a boon for the soundtrack as already two songs from the soundtrack ('Title track' and 'Dhunki') have managed to become extremely popular due to some agressive promotion on air.

The album kick starts with the title track sung by K.K and Krishna Beura.Although the song offers nothing new,it is far better than most of the 'masala'songs churned out in the recent past.The song is very 'desi' in nature with the 'dhol' being the dominant instrument and some western arrangements have been used here and there lending a new age sound to it.Irshad Kamil's lyrics are very catchy and very different from what he has written in the past.K.K leads from the front while Krishna Beura's voice has been used only for the hook line 'Marimonial si aankhein....''.He seems to breaking out of the Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan mode by delivering a kind of rendition which was also quite evident in 'The Mutton Song' from 'Luv Ka The End'. Nice to hear K.K sing a kind of song which he rarely sings. The song has already become very popular and is sure to become more now when the full song has released.

The next track 'Dhunki' is the other song to have become extremely popular before the audio release. The song has Neha Bhasin,who was last heard crooning 'Kuch Khaas' from 'Fashion’, coming behind the mike. The song is very different from the singer's last Hindi film song and reminds one of the kind of songs she used to come out with her band 'Viva'.The song can be categorized as what people call a 'sufi rock' song. The lyrics are again a highlight and has a strong sense of divinity attached to it while the composition takes a complete Bollywood-ish rock route. Sohail's music is bound to appeal to both the classes and the masses. The video,in which Katrina is seen in a never seen before rebellious Rock star avatar,has contributed a great deal in making the song popular.

The third track ‘Choomantar’ sung by Benny Dayal and Aditi Singh Sharma doesn’t grow on you instantly but after a hearing or two one falls in love with the song completely. The song is high on techno beats and follows a somewhat hip hop groove.Benny and Aditi do a fine job in rendering the song.Infact,if I had not seen Benny’s name on the cd credits,I would have thought the song to have been sung by Sohail Sen himself.Benny sounds very different from what one heard of him in his earlier songs. One can instantly connect his voice to the numerous songs sung by Sohail in ‘What’s Your Raashee’ and even ‘Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey’. Coming back to the song-the song may find some time to climb the popularity charts depending upon its picturisation.

The fourth track is called ‘Isq Risk’ and is sung by none other than Rahat Fateh Ali Khan. The song reminds one of ‘O re Piya’ sung by Rahat himself for another yrf film(Aaja Nachle).The composition is very simple and has a semi classical base to it.Irshad Kamil’s lyrics score again.The music is decent.One expected  Sohail to create some magic with Rahat which doesn’t quite happen.

The fifth track is called ‘Madhubala’ and is sung by Ali Zafar and Shweta Pandit.Ali Zafar has often been accused of being a Kishore Kumar clone and in fact the way this song starts one is reminded of ‘Jai Jai Shiv Shankar’ sung by Kishore Kumar himself. The song is a typical ‘Nautanki’ number and one have heard several such tracks in the recent past. And the thing is that such songs work big time with the listeners if picturised well.

The sixth track,’Do Dhaari Talwar’ is sung by Shahid Mallya and Shweta Pandit. Shahid’s voice can also be heard in ‘Rabba’(Mausam),in which he sounded like a Roop Kumar Rathod clone. Although his voice sounds quite different (and original) in  ‘Do Dhaari Talwar’ one can’t really applaud as he seems like a total misfit for this song and the energy in his voice which was quite evident in ‘Naina Wali Whiskey’ (Sahi Dhande Galat Bande),is completely missing in this song.The song ,undoubtedly,is the weakest link in the entire album.The only that works in this song are Shweta Pandit’s lively vocals.The song is strictly average and would need some really good picturisation to make it somewhat popular.

The rest of the two tracks are remixes of ‘Isq Risk’ and ‘Choomantar’ by Joshilay.The ‘Choomantar’ remix is strictly okay but the ‘Isq Risk’ remix works because it has Sreeramachandra and Neha Bhasin singing it with some really fresh youthful energy which,more or less,changes the structure of the song and I found it to be actually better than the Rahat version.

Overall,Mere Brother Ki Dulhan is a very entertaining soundtrack which has two sure shot super hit songs (The title track and Dhunki),three good to above average songs(Choomantar, Isq Risk and Madhubala) and a situational track in the form of ‘Do Dhaari Talwar’.Irshad Kamil’s lyrics work big time.Sohail Sen does a good job in creating a ‘masala’ soundtrack but reaches nowhere near ‘What’s Your Raashee’.

Overall Rating-3.5/5