You can listen to the songs at the end of the review.
Coma Coma is run-of-the-mill techno dance material which lacks any of the imaginativeness that one associates with Ghibran. Then again, it is also a song where the lyricist rhymes coma with Fujiyama. Kunal Ganjawala’s nasal rendition doesn’t help the song’s cause either. The composer does relatively better in the second party song of the soundtrack, Shanthi Om Shanthi, the incorporation of veena being a particularly deft touch. Clinton Cerejo and Maya Iyer turn out to be a good choice on the vocals. In Rajadhi Rajanappa Ghibran produces a track that totally plays to vocalist Thomson Andrews’ strengths, a very retro ragtime-esque (I think, at least the initial portions) piece that sees some brilliant use of brass and even the occasional violin, peppered with all the quirky sounds. Thomson of course aces the singing part.
The remaining two tracks are the real scene-stealers of Run Raja Run’s soundtrack. In Bujjimma Bujjimma while the composer produces a groovy, wacky folk dance track he also layers it brilliantly with unexpected sounds. While on one side there are the folk percussion elements like the thavil, the other end is held up by the bass playing a bluesy line and the trippy 8 bit sounds in the interludes. Gold Devaraj and the backing vocalists do an energetic job on their part. Like he has done in the past too, Ghibran reserves the best of the soundtrack for Chinmayi. Vadhantune Nenu Vadhantune is a beautifully haunting melody from the composer set to a resonant background replete with an almost Raja-evocative employment of flutes (and that lovely mappilappaattu-like clapping rhythm). This is probably the most complicated song Chinmayi has sung for Ghibran given the variations it goes through, but the lady handles them impeccably.
Run Raja Run. Ghibran’s Telugu debut isn’t as exquisite as his Tamil repertoire, but there are a couple of tracks which demonstrate the composer’s class.
Music Aloud Rating: 7.5/10
Top Recos: Vadhantune Nenu, Bujjima Bujjima, Rajadhi Rajanappa
