Director: Nagesh Kukunoor
Producer: Shailendra Singh
Music Directors: Salim Sulaiman, Neeraj Sridhar, Bohemia
Lyricists: Irfan Siddique, Sameer, Bohemia
Label: T-Series
Read the rest of this entry »

 
C……………………..D……..F
Woh Chali Woh chali dekho pyar ki gali

……D……..F…….G……….C
Usey rokey na koi woh chali woh chali

Read the rest of this entry »

Director: Sangeeth Sivan
Producer: Jaswant Khera
Music Director: Pritam Chakraborthy
Lyricist: Shabbir Ahmed
Label: K Sera Sera Music
Read the rest of this entry »

Salim Sulaiman have in the past delivered some of their best works for Nagesh Kukunoor. And considering that they ended last year in style with some brilliant tracks in Fashion and Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, this soundtrack of theirs was something I was looking forward to. And I wasn’t totally disappointed. The music review for you.

Nazaara Hai

A rock song to start off the proceedings. And Salim-Sulaiman picked up the ideal singer in Pentagram-vocalist Vishal Dadlani (of Vishal-Shekhar). The guitar solos in the second interlude and towards the end are quite catchy. Salim-Sulaiman go on to prove that they too are well-equipped to join the rock bandwagon which is really catching up in Bollywood music these days. DJ Amyth comes out with a remix version of the song, which dilutes the rock effect with a lot of electronic music and makes a mess of it. I thought at least rock songs would be spared from being remixed!!

Haafiz Khuda

Salim Sulaiman do a Pritam with a haunting romantic song akin to their own Mar Jaawaan from Fashion, though less subtle in its instrumentation. Being a genre right down his alley, Mohit Chauhan delivers it with ease. Joining him is Tulsi Kumar, daughter of Gulshan Kumar. I have not been a great fan of her in the past and have always held the opinion that had it not been for her illustrious father she would have got far less chances in Bollywood than what her repertoire shows now. Its no coincidence then that so far she has sung only in albums brought out by T-Series!! Having said that, she has changed my views quite a bit having done a decent job in this song, and this could even qualify as one of her best works till date. However, I would have preferred someone like Shreya Ghoshal or Shruti Pathak (Mar Jaawaan) for this one. The remix version by DJ Amyth kind of spoils the mood trying to pep it up with an increased tempo and beats.

Aaja Maahi

Neeraj Sridhar dons dual roles of music director and singer in this romantic song which is reminiscent of his Bombay Vikings days, complete with the initial English lyrics. Tulsi Kumar has been taking some good music lessons of late I guess, coz she does a pretty good job in this song as well. In places her rendition and the mood of the song reminded me of Tere Mera Pyaar Sanam done by Bombay Vikings with Phalguni Pathak. Neeraj Sridhar has composed a song previously in Rules – Pyaar Ka Superhit Formula, but this is the first time I guess that he is credited as himself for the music instead of Bombay Vikings. This is one remix that does work DJ Amyth’s way in that it is quite listenable, though not as good as the original.

I Got the Picture

Bohemia dishes out a typical desi hip hop number which I presume would be featuring alongside the end credits. Though the Hindi rap does sound interesting, the song gets boring after some time as the same lines keep repeating. And quite strangely, the last one and a half minutes of the song is just the instrumental loop played over and over again!! On the remix front, for once DJ Amyth displays some creativity in using some Indian percussion and other beats rather than just the usual electronic loops. Though not the greatest of remixes, this one definitely is the best remix of the album.

Kuchh Is Tarah

Haafiz Khuda reproduced bit by bit with different lyrics. Wonder why this was done. If one was a male version and the other female, it was still understandable but this one has the same two singers singing both the songs!! And as if three versions of the same song weren’t enough, there is a remix version for this one too!! Whatever the actual purpose behind having four versions of the same tune in the soundtrack, it definitely does serve the purpose of spoiling the impression created by Haafiz Khuda by tiring you of tune!

Nagesh Kukunoor has set a sort of precedent by having a remix for every song of the soundtrack (half of them unnecessary and unattractive, I might add)!! Salim Sulaiman have kept their end up with two very good tunes, and Neeraj Sridhar has also done a commendable job. On the whole a decent soundtrack, which, like I said for 13B, is more than enough for a suspense/supernatural thriller, as in most cases songs don’t hold a lot of importance in such movies.

Shut up and vote is a new single from Bangalore-based Thermal and a Quarter. It is the official campaign song of the Jaago Re!. The song is smartly written and it manages to send it’s message across without being preachy.And what more? Its got a catchy riff too. Way to go TAAQ! Here is the video.

His work first came into spotlight a couple of years back when he captured the freshness of teenage love and effectively summarised the youthful romance of the movie Mera Pehla Pehla Pyaar through its title song. Thought the song was missing in the movie per se, it became very popular with the college-goers and others alike. This year his next Bollywood work, the title song of Aloo Chaat, is again getting decent reviews around. In the meantime he is pretty active on the advertising field as well with a more recent one being Ranbir Kapoor’s Pepsi My Can ad.In spite of all this, the man himself hasn’t been much in the limelight. Music Aloud decided to catch up with ex-Parikrama guitarist Vipin Mishra in his atelier where he is doing the final touch-ups to his first full-fledged Bollywood album, Aarif Sheikh’s Lets Dance.

Could you tell us a bit about your musical beginnings?

I saw Parikrama perform at just about the time they were formed, in the winter of 1991. I was finishing class 11th, and that got me interested at the whole prospect of playing rock guitar through 25000 watts of sound!
The learning started towards .. 1992-93.
Formed a band in college, auditioned for Parikrama in 1995, IInd Year Eco Hons, Delhi Univ, joined them, toured for 6 odd years, more than a 100 odd shows, got a bit bored, played guitars with Silk Route, started doing some commercial work, set up a project studio, got bored, moved to Mumbai, 2005.
Happy and not bored till now!!

From Parikrama to MP3 to Aloo Chaat, how do you think you and your music have evolved?

Parikrama is and was a genre specific band. Hard Rock! So that’s one change. My music as of now is freestyle.. Jazz, hip hop, world, orchestral, ethnic…just meandering and free flowing.
Secondly the approach. From a guitar player, to composer.You have to hear the song in totality in your head.

What do you listen to during your leisure time?

Mornings, jazz with newspaper and coffee. Adhoc : U2, Rehman, Coldplay, Keane, Toto,Leonard Cohen (For the words!), Maroon 5, Paul Rogers,Silk Route, A-Ha Old Stff, Tears For Fears.. the list goes on and on.. Zep, Floyd, Crowes..

What kind of music can fans expect out of Let’s Dance?

Well, Its like hip hop and 80s mixed up. Even the ballads and a slower “fight against all odds” tune has a mid tempo hip hop groove to it. Its a young album.

Which artists have influenced you the most?

Whole lotta them, but in the domestic scene, I d have to say A.R.Rehman. He’s the reason why so many of us, who scoffed a “Filmi” music through our teens are here! He showed class can succeed with masses.

As an upcoming music composer, what is your take on the growing influence of Western,

especially electronic, elements in contemporary Indian music?

Music, like any other art, is a reflection of contemporary society. There is a huge exchange of ideas, ideologies, influences, information. The west is turning to the east, and the east is absorbing the west…it’s a brand new pie. Like heritage architecture must be preserved, so must traditional music be promoted. But at the same time, we must not grudge the great new shiny, mighty and beautiful towers which may come up. Because that’s the result of what architects today think of as “beautiful” and where people aspire to reside “today”.

Would you mind telling us about your upcoming projects?

Well there are a few, but nothing concrete as of now.

With the advent of various music sites such as myspace on the one hand, and the plethora

of talent shows on the other, today’s youngsters have lots of avenues to showcase their

talents, which could either work in their favour or be their undoing. In such a scenario what

do you think are the challenges facing the wannabe musicians? Words of advice?

That’s a very broad question and is an interview by itself. So we’ll do this another time, but in short…

(For Composers) I believe a person chooses a creative art from cause he as something to say. He has a perspective, has opinions and looks for a form to express them..So most importantly, you should have something to say…and not browse Korean, Indonesian, Thai, Arabic, regional and other world music web pages for inspiration!
(For Singers) Gone are the days of mimics. Find yourself and be yourself. The further apart and proficient you are, greater are your chances of getting noticed.

While Music Aloud looks forward to Lets Dance and more from this young music director, you can check out Vipin’s website for more details and more music.

Music video of Chalta Chal, a song written, composed and performed by Vipin Mishra for a single.

Promo video of the title track of Aloo Chaat done by Vipin Mishra.

Music video of Aaj Kal, written, composed and performed by Vipin Mishra.

Title track of Mera Pehla Pehla Pyaar

After a debacle that was Apna Sapna Money Money, Sangeeth Sivan returns this year with Ek – The Power of One. Apna Sapna.. didn’t have much to say on the music front either in spite of Pritam, with just one really good song, Dil Mein Baji Guitar, which sadly turned out a rip-off. So it wasn’t with much hope that I started off with Ek.. which again has Pritam scoring the music.

Sambhale

Albums without Punjabi songs are becoming such a rarity these days!! While Straight belonged to that elite league, Ek.. starts off straight with a quintessential Bhangra-rap. Sukhwinder and Sunidhi are as impeccable as ever on the vocals but the tune and orchestration sounds so repetitive that you lose interest right at the beginning.

Bang Bang

Now this is more of a Pritam song. While slightly reminiscent of Race Saanson Ki, this one is more of a poor cousin of that number. The rather crude vocals by Rana Mazumder are a major factor in rendering the song so, apart from various other factors. Wonder why the regular favourite for such songs, Neeraj Sridhar, wasn’t chosen.

Sona Lagda

This one is the recreation of a traditional Punjabi song. I haven’t the original song, but this version doesn’t sound Punjabi at all, rather a 90s Bollywood song. Shashwati has done a good job on vocals. The name Shashwati might not ring any bell but most of you must have heard and more specifically seen the videos of her famous songs like Kaanta Laga, Kaliyon Ka Chaman etc!! The flute interludes are quite attractive. Not so attractive however is the remix of the song by K&G, which sees an excess of electronica.

Tum Saath Ho

Unmistakably Pritam, this song reminds one strongly of his erstwhile songs like Tu Hi Meri Shab Hai. Again a surprise entry here is Abhijeet with Shreya Ghoshal as opposed to the expected KK. To be fair to Abhijeet however, he has done total justice to the song with his flawless rendition. Nevertheless, the increased tempo somehow steals away some of the beauty of the song. Tu Hi Meri.. had the perfect pace for such a mood and this song would have done well to follow the same pace.
Finally Ek.. did live up to my (lack of) expectations!!On a positive note Ek – The Power of One is definitely a better musical than Apna Sapna Money Money!! But that doesn’t help its cause much. Surely Pritam is capable of much more than this. And given that there is a better album in Straight, you would do well to avoid Ek...

If Jazbah had Suhel Khan singing alongside different singers in every song of the album, Sagar Desai has gone one step ahead and given every song in Straight to a single singer, Suraj Jagan. At least the credits section has mention of only Suraj Jagan as singer. And when you see Suraj Jagan in the singer list and rewind to his previous songs, Johnny Gaddaar from the namesake movie and Zehreele from Rock On!!, the expectations from this album shall have been set already, that of a rock album. To the album then.

Saanson Ka Rukna

Except for the alternative-style instrumentation, Saanson Ka Rukna sounds straight out of a Beatles album, complete with the chorus. And when I say this, be sure that there is nothing negative intended. The song has been brilliantly arranged, and Suraj Jagan’s singing is exceptional. The chorus deserves a special mention, as they are instrumental in bringing in that old timer feel. In short, Sagar Desai starts off with a bang! Lyricist Subrat Sinha has included some English in between the predominantly Hindi song, probably to fit the rock mood.

Humse Jo Churaiye

While this song again continues in the rock mode, the song is set along softer and more romantic lines. Suraj has toned down his voice well to fit the mood, though I would have preferred someone like KK for this song. The chorus again succeeds in taking you back in time. The chorus really deserved a mention in the track credits for the wonderful job they have done. The Hinglish lyrics continue, with increased concentration of English this time.

Kya Hua Hoo Hoo

This one sees a further dilution in the rock component, as it follows a more folkish line. Suraj’s rendition has been superior in this as well. Yet another engaging feel-good track from Sagar Desai.

Love Love Love

On any other day, this song would have felt like a good one, and it is a decent one for that matter. But after listening to three superior offerings this one somehow doesn’t quite appeal. The lyrics, and especially some horrendous singing towards the end add to the ineffectuality of the song. While the mix of Hindi and English sounded fine in the first two songs, here it sounds irritating in some places. The song seems to be picturised on a party or some sort of a get together.

Run Run Run

This one is apparently the background score of the movie, and is done by Louis Banks. Here Suraj Jagan returns to his elements, screaming away to glory!! As a rock song this Run.. is totally fine, but coming from Louis Banks, I expected something more subtle.
While Sagar Desai has been limited to the parallel cinema arena so far, more specifically to the Rajat Kapoor household (Mixed Doubles, Bheja Fry, Siddharth – The Prisoner, Mithya), this brilliant soundtrack shall be his ticket to mainstream movies, hopefully. Further about Desai, he is part of a band called Zambezi funk with leading rapper Blaaze. You can see below the video of a wonderful song from the band, featuring both Desai and Blaaze.

Suhel Khan, son of sitar maestro Ustad Rais Khan, and Vinod Bhatt, came out with their debut independent album titled Ustad Sultan Khan and friends in the year 2007. The album had seen reasonable success in the market, marked by some exceptional compositions. This year the pair is back with their next album. While in the first album they used the name of Ustad Sultan Khan in the title to gain leverage, this time they have decided to have a go without such a name, calling their album Jazbah. Lets see if they have a sound set of compositions to back their move.

Meri Aankhon Mein

Increase the tempo of this song a bit, add some percussion in the background, and one would get reminded of Pancham da classics like Ruk Jaana from Warrant. As it happens however, this song is a rather toned down one with not much instrumental backing except for a keyboard and a bass guitar. Suhel and Shreya Ghoshal do a clean job of the vocals, with Suhel even sounding like Kishore Kumar in some places. On the whole a good listen.

Jaane Kyon

This pleasant semi-classical song is marked by some excellent sitar (wonder if it is Suhel’s dad Ustad Rais Khan). The singers are ghazal exponent Bhupinder Singh, wife Mitali Singh and Suhel. For the uninitiated, Bhupinder-Mitali are quite active on the ghazal front, having released a handful of albums together and individually in the past.

Dil Toda Tune

As the title suggests, this is a melancholic song, sung soulfully by Akbar Ali and Suhel Khan. I believe this Akbar Ali is the same Pakistani singer who had given some splendid performances as contestant of Junoon Kuch Kar Dikhaana Hai on NDTV Imagine. Apart from sitar, this song also sees the entry of sarangi in the second interlude played by Ustad Sultan Khan in all probability. The cameo by Pramila Rao towards the end has also been pretty impressive.

Jhanki Lagi Chhaon Ki

Sultan Khan joins the vocalists this time, accompanied by Shreya Ghoshal and Suhel Khan. The song starts off on a folk note characterised by the sarangi bit, but the song isn’t exactly what you would call folk. And though the song sounds promising at the beginning it grows monotonous as it progresses. And to be frank I am a great fan of Sultan Khan the sarangist but not that appreciative of Ustad Sultan Khan the vocalist.

Deewana Mera Dil Sanam

Suhel Khan’s next teammate from his previous album Ustad Sultan Khan and Friends, Sadhana Sargam, is introduced in this song to sing along his side. Though it is pleasant-sounding, the tune is rather flat and fails to engage the listener much.

Bhar Aaye Ankhiyan

Its not everyday that you get to hear the usually bubbly Jaspinder Narula singing soft songs. But she does a wonderful job, singing alongside Suhel Khan to produce an enjoyable song with a semi-classical flavour.

Man Re

Suhel ropes in another singer Tarannum, another contestant of Junoon I believe, to accompany him in this song. But the song almost completely belongs to Suhel as he takes you through the various nuances of the song with ease. The flute-sarangi in the first interlude is catchy.

Manzil

After hearing the songs so far, this one strikes you as rather offbeat, to say the least. Even stranger is the arrangement of the song. I am not quite sure what it is that Suhel intended by the song. The lyrics and the rendition style suggest that the number was meant as a pep-up song, but the instrumentation continues along the lines that was followed in the previous songs. As a result the attempts at liveliness by Rahul Vaidya, ex-Indian Idol runner up, and Suhel Khan sound rather odd. Suhel especially sounds totally out of place in this song.

Saajna

Suhel redeems himself from the previous faux pas to produce another brilliant semi-classical. This time he is joined by another reality show product, ex-Indian Idol semifinalist Keka Ghoshal. This is really where Suhel the singer really belongs. Wonder why he had to try singing the previous one at all. And Keka has been brilliant.

Saiyaan Tori Boli

This song is my favourite from the album, having elements of fusion to it. The singing has been done well by Suhel and Preeti Uttam, the daughter of Uttam Singh. Uttam Singh, in case you remember, was the composer who hit the headlines in 1997 for his brilliant compositions in Dil To Pagal Hai, but unfortunately couldn’t live up to those standards subsequently, delivering just a couple of good soundtracks after that. I was rather surprised to learn that Preeti Uttam has been around for quite some time, starting off with Lakdi Ki Kathi from Masoom, singing in almost a couple of dozens of movies hence. And listening to this song can’t help but wonder why she never made it to the top.

Yaad Tihari

Javed Bashir, vocalist of the Pakistani Mekal Hassan Band, puts forth an excellent display of his classical knowledge as he engages in a sort of bout with Suhel Khan in this ghazal (I hope I am right in classifying this as a ghazal). Pramila Rao provides excellent support with her high-pitched rendition in the backdrop.

Taj Deena

Mitali Singh returns to deliver the last song of the album with Suhel Khan. This one again reminds of yesteryear Bollywood songs. However the similarity this time works negatively for the song, as the tune is one of which we have had enough and more in the yesteryear songs itself.
The composer duo of Suhel Khan and Vinod Bhatt spin off yet another fine album, albeit marred by a couple of fumbles. In any case they more than make up for those with other songs. I did feel however that Suhel committed an overkill by partaking in every song of the album, whereas he could have avoided singing in at least a couple of them. These minor foibles notwithstanding, if you are the type looking for some music that goes easy on your ears, I strongly recommend this album.

Arrival of celebrity heirs to the film world is always a matter of much fanfare, more so in Bollywood. The latest such kid-in-the-block is veteran producer Vashu Bhagnani’s son Jackky Bhagnani whose debut movie Kal Kissne Dekha‘s release is just round the corner. To ensure that nothing was left wanting in terms of publicity, Vashu chose the biggest possible venue for the music launch of the movie, the 54th Annual Filmfare awards. Here is Music Aloud’s take on the album.

Aalam Guzarne Ko

Except for the ghatam sequence in the middle and Suzanne D’mello aka Suzie Q’s westernised throaty humming at the same time, Aalam Guzarne Ko is your typical Bollywood song of the 90s. Nevertheless Sajid-Wajid have done a good job of arranging the song, bringing in a breezy feel to it. And when you have Sonu Nigam doing the vocals, there is not much that can go wrong on that front. On the whole, a good composition evoking, in parts, a sense of nostalgia and in other, a sense of déjà vu.

Soniye Billori

Yet another Punjabi-disco song to add to the exponentially growing list of Bollywood songs in that genre! And for the same reason, I didn’t find this song with slight Arabesque flavour very impressive. Sonu does justice to the rendition however, assisted by Suzie Q. The club mix doesn’t succeed in doing much of a facelift either.

Aasmaan Jhuk Gaya

A romantic song with dark overtones. I had initial ideas that this song might be subject to a sensual picturisation but the orchestration as the song progressed didn’t quite give that impression. Whatever the picturisation be, the song is an engaging one, rendered very well by Shaan and Shreya Ghoshal. The choral segment in the second interlude is especially impressive.

Jashn Hai Josh Hai

Neeraj Sridhar seems to be a regular feature in almost every Hindi movie of late, singing for every music director barring A R Rahman. And so it is that Neeraj shares the microphone with Alisha Chinai in this disco song. The Arabic instrumentation and tune gives the song an overall Sufi touch. Especially the interludes, devoid of the modern beats sound very much Sufi. The stringed instrument, which I believe is the Oud, has been employed very well. Alisha Chinai’s voice is well suited for songs of this type, and she pulls it off in style.

Tere Bina Lagta Nahi

Of late it has become a sort of necessity that music directors themselves sing a couple of their songs in the movie. Sajid and Wajid used to work in the chorus department during their initial days, but last year Wajid decided to jump into the mainstream playback singing bandwagon. And I should say he has done a decent job in this solo. The rendition style and the general orchestration of the song would have one thinking that this is from some Pakistani band.

Bin Tere Mar Javan Main

A classical song having Punjabi lyrics. A rather strange combo I would imagine. Even stranger is the fact that the song is just over one minute long. But in that one minute Shreya Ghoshal does manage to capture your attention with her superior singing skills. Too bad its so short. Not everyday that you get to hear a proper classical song in a Bollywood soundtrack. Of course this year there was Bhor Bhayi in Dilli 6 but even that was only over three minutes.

Kal Kissne Dekha

Another trip down the memory lane, this time with a song reminiscent of the 80s disco numbers. From the heroic elements in the instrumentation, this definitely seems to be the song that will see the entry of Jackky. Shaan always succeeds in lending this commanding effect when singing such songs, which was seen with songs like Don. Shreya does the chorus part. The effect is quite the same in this song as well. On the flipside, I don’t understand why the music directors find it necessary to add rap to every such fast song. This song could have managed quite well without the rap by Bob. But Sajid and Wajid felt otherwise. The club mix is again a bummer when compared to the original.
A third version of the song, namely the romantic version, has Wajid getting behind the mike for the second time. With the kind of percussion (conga if I am not mistaken) and the guitar, this song could very well pass off for an R D Burman comp!! And Wajid has tried to modify his voice to make it Kishore-like and has ended up Kumar Sanu-like!! The singing has been good nevertheless.

Sajid-Wajid may not be the best music directors in town, but they have put forth their best efforts in Kal Kissne Dekha and have ensured that if anyone spoils Jackky’s debut its definitely not going to be them! Now whether Jackky does indeed display the prowess to make all the efforts put in by papa Bhagnani worthwhile, let us wait and see. After all, kal kissne dekha..!!