You can listen to the soundtrack here (link via @desikhichdi).
The folk-induced energy of Udaari is infectious, composer Arijit Datta manages to incorporate Western elements into the folk track without making them jarring. Well almost, Ishq Bector’s rapping doesn’t always work. The star of the song is lead vocalist Swaroop Khan who sounds remarkably like Sukhwinder and is as adept at negotiating the higher notes. Liked the lyrics by Ravinder Randhawa too, wonder what Udaari means. Uljhi Uljhi’s only problem is that it is extremely short (just under 1.5 minutes). The sweet, unplugged, Vishal Bhardwaj-esque piece has Arijit himself behind the mic (interestingly he even resembles VB a bit) doing a neat rendition. Bebaak sort of continues on Uljhi Uljhi’s vein with his Airport bandmate Nikhil D’Souza on vocals, a man whose voice seems custom-made for this genre! But the composer adds more layers to the song as it progresses, most fabulous of which is the trumpet. Bol is the song most relatable to the Airport frontman’s pop-rock background, and the best of the soundtrack possibly for that very reason. Of course, he has a lot of help here from Shafqat Amanat Ali with his classical nuances. Shafqat gets another song too, the brooding Bhugol. A tad too templatized in its arrangement, but the tune and singing make it worthwhile.
Assuming Filmistaan is Arijit Datta’s first Bollywood soundtrack (he had previously done a song in Not A Love Story I believe), impressive debut! Hoping to hear more of him.
Music Aloud Rating: 8/10
Top Recos: Bol, Bhugol, Bebaak
