Songs at the end.
I Want To Fly that was a background piece in Bangalore Days, gets promoted to the main soundtrack of Bangalore Naatkal. Nothing seems to have changed here given its English lyrics written by singer Anna Katharina Valayil. And it sounds as lovely as it did then; Latino guitar phrases laid across the ambient, Einaudi-ish piano, supporting Anna’s brilliantly soulful rendition. Composer Gopi Sunder transposes two more of his Malayalam originals to the Tamil soundtrack, albeit with Tamil lyrics. The wedding song Thodakkam Mangalyam even has the same singers – Vijay Yesudas, Sachin Warrier & Divya S Menon – delivering with the same level of exuberance. It is only Pazhani Bharathi’s lyrics that don’t seem to quite work, don’t know if it is because I am too used to the Malayalam words. Anna Katharina Valayil replaces Nazriya on the lead vocals of En Vizhiyin Kanavu, the Ente Kannil remake, while the composer reprises his male counterpart act. Gorgeous unplugged track whose only drawback is its extreme similarity to Carla Bruni’s Quelqu’un m’a dit (you can find the clip on itwofs homepage, dated 29 June 2014). Wonder if Anna had some uncredited contribution to the Malayalam vocals too, the humming sounds too close.
Gopi tones down the Summer of 69 elements in the Bangalore tribute song Paraparapa Oru Ooru; the arrangement in general is better done than the Malayalam version. The relativity aside though, the song still is just decent, with some sprightly vocals from Ranjith. Aaga Motham Ennai is the most smartly done from a remake perspective; you can make out the faint connection with Thumbi Penne but the track is completely new. The breezy arrangement sees some lovely violins and guitars, and the composer himself gets behind the mic for this one, delivering it well. Finally there is Naan Maati Konden, the movie’s equivalent of Ethu Kari Raavilum, to me the best track of Bangalore Days. This one is markedly different, though very much recognisable as a Gopi Sunder work. Not quite the same level as Ethu Kari, but an engaging one all the same, courtesy also the fab vocals by Karthik.
Bangalore Naatkal. A remake that largely conforms to its Malayalam original, except with its best track.
Music Aloud Rating: 7.5/10
Top Recos: I Want To Fly, Naan Maati Konden, En Vizhiyin Kanavu
