Aalaap – Music Review (Bollywood Movie Soundtrack)

You can listen to the soundtrack here.

Agnee take the Manmaani route with Paa Paraa Paa, only this one is wackier and more irreverent. And as expected of an Agnee song it is replete with sparkling guitar work courtesy Koco. Nikhil D’Souza, Bonnie Chakraborty, Dhruv Shrikent (debutant I suppose?) and Mohan voice the “rant against teachers” penned by Mohan himself. Ek Nayi Roshni is your standard rock song, something that is all too familiar in Bollywood now with the advent of people like Amit Trivedi. In fact with its arrangement and optimism-laden lyrics by Pancchi Jalonvi this song wouldn’t be out of place in the soundtrack of Udaan! In any case, what makes the song stand out from the rest is Mohan’s outstanding singing. The man doesn’t seem as fluent in the higher portions in this song at least, but come base notes and that voice just blows your mind! Another of the few debutants introduced by Agnee in Aalaap is Meera Shenoy, as she languidly starts off Dil Ye Awaaz De before Mohan takes over. A stellar job from the two singers (and the chorus) and a lovely arrangement highlighted by its percussion (by Varun Venkit) make this the song of the soundtrack!

In the latter half of the soundtrack the band departs from their usual style to take on a more “filmy” disposition. Like singer Mohan says, Soniye might be the first instance of the motherland being referred to by that word. But barring that exercise of imagination by lyricist Shellee¸ the song didn’t work that well for me. It is a soothing song, yes, buoyed by Mohan’s singing that is more classical-oriented this time, but with the Soniye and everything this seemed more lovelorn than patriotic. With Chadhti Jawaani (no connection to the old song) the composers enter a territory totally alien to them – item numbers. And produce a fairly entertaining folksy (Raga Brindavana Saranga based?) piece. While Kanika Joshi makes an impressive debut, Bonnie Chakraborty supports her well with his cameo.  The final song, the romantic melody Shuruwat Pyaar Ki sees yet another newbie, Yamini Lavanian, sing alongside Nikhil D’Souza. Nice simple lines by Pancchi Jalonvi, a hummable tune, and a matchingly simple acoustic guitar-led (played by Mohan) arrangement – neat ending the soundtrack.

In the six songs of Aalaap, Agnee have thrown in a fair bit of everything –  some for their regular followers, some for Bollywood buffs. The result: a solid, engaging Bollywood debut from the band.

Music Aloud Rating: 7.5/10

Top Recos: Dil Ye Awaaz De, Paa Paraa Paa, Shuruwat Pyaar Ki

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Guy Incognito says:

The song Paa Paraa Paa sounds way too much like the title track of Lafangey Parindey for my liking (even the meter of the lyrics matches eerily well).

VIP says:

if it was a source you had access to i would definitely have told you. 🙂

Vini says:

Haha way to help your readers out! But anyways no problem 🙂

VIP says:

I have my sources.. ;D

Vini says:

Yo where did you get to hear the album? I cant find it anywhere…