Tamasha - Music Review

Post 'Rockstar' there is always the curiosity element when Imtiaz Ali and Rahman come together. 

'Tamasha' starring Ranbir Kapoor and Deepika Padukone in the lead is their 3rd outing. Here is a quick look at the tracks.

Matargashti - sounds more like a 'Rockstar' leftover, more so because of Mohit Chauhan's singing, till Rahman comes up with a lilting twist half way through the track. One that will rock the charts for sometime to come.

Heer Toh - rides on Irshad Kamil's Hinglish lyrics and exploits Mika's singing skills pretty well, which is not the case most often and ends on frenzied high. One can imagine the  heroine wiping her tears away and joining in to shake a leg as the pace picks up towards the end. Heer Toh Abhi Khush hai!

Tum Saath Ho -  is from a standard Rahman melody template, one that you have heard in the past in possibly Sadhna Sargam's voice. One cannot ignore Alka Yagnik almost sounding like Lataji. Passable.

Wat Wat Wat - Rahman strikes a lovely balance of pep and melody with this infectious track. Arijit Singh & Sashwat Singh only take it a notch higher with their rendition. One of those tracks that you will come to love after a few listens.

Chali Kahani - This dramatic track swings between moods and genres and is an interesting listen for some of the transitions. Sukhwinder handles it pretty well, ably supported by Haricharan & Haripriya. One has to wait and see how this is used in the film. 

Safarnama - Lucky Ali sounded very Rahmanish in this song. Rahman also pitches in with some vocal backing in the interludes. The song ends better than it starts with Rahman upping the ante half way thru. Could go on to become a favorite with FM stations along with Wat Wat Wat and Matargashti

Parade De La Bastilla (Instrumental) - Has a very celtic feel to it and should work well as background material

Wat Wat (Vengeance Mix) - I liked the other version better. The mix sounds a bit too forced and out of sync to me. The other version had a inherent beauty that seems suppressed here with the 'vengeance'

Tu Koi Aur - Perfect track for the director to put together montages of the lead pair reminiscing their happier past. Typical slow burner from Rahman, with fantastic support from Alma Ferovic and a majestic Western classical choir. Rounds up the soundtrack well and on a high.

Imtiaz Ali and Rahman have set such lofty standards for themselves with 'Rockstar' that it is tough to scale it with every outing. This is definitely not comparable to 'Rockstar' but certainly better than their second outing 'Highway'.

My Picks: Wat Wat and Heer Toh

Music of Enthiran

Albeit a little late, here is my take on the music for the most anticipated movie of its time, Enthiran-The Robot.

I was personally looking forward to this album from Rahman, as this is his playground. He is known to experiment with new sounds and this sci-fi flick gives him enormous scope to score big time.

Of the 7 tracks, "Chitti dance showcase" is more instrumental and is an eclectic mix of Konnakol (performing percussion syllables vocally), percussions, guitars and a brief but beautiful western classical string passage.

'Pudhiya Manidha! Bhoomikku Vaa", the track introducing "Enthiran", starts off with SPB's & ARR's robotic voices before switching to the hypnotic voice of Khatija Rahman. Yes, the daughter of the academy award winner's voice sounds quite ethereal, as she sings "மாற்றம் கொண்டு வா..". SPB pitches in with super energy in the CharaNams, where the various attributes of the Robot are listed out. Vairamuthu dishes out some nice lines like "கருவில் பிறந்த எல்லாம் மரிக்கும், அறிவில் பிறந்தது மரிப்பதே இல்லை" and "பன்மொழிகள் கற்றாலும் தந்தை மொழி தமிழல்லவா!"


"Kaadhal ANukkaL" will see the scientist Rajni romancing Ash, in his super cool looks. The strumming guitar sets the tone for this breezy track. Vijay Prakash and Shreya Ghoshal glide through the lilting notes with utmost ease. The bagpipe like sound in the first interlude is nice. The loop in "Oh Baby" ensures that the song stays in loop. You are gonna hear this song a lot more in the days to come.


"Irumbile Oru Idhayam" sung by Rahman in the company of Lady Kash n' Krissy (this Tamil rapper duo from Singapore had also lent their voices to the song composed by ARR for the World Classical Tamil Conference) is my pick of this album. The song is the Robot's proposal to the heroine. Watch out for some super imaginative lyrics by (Madan) Karky (s/o of Vairamuthu). Sample this.

"உன் நீலக் கண்ணோரம் மின்சாரம் பறிப்பேன்,
என் நீலப் பல்லாலே உன்னோடு சிரிப்பேன்"
or
"தொட்டு பேசும் போது shock அடிக்கக் கூடும்
காதல் செய்யும் நேரம் motor வேகம் கூடும்
இரவில், நடுவில் battery தான் தீரும்!

The rap at the end is quite infectious. Robotic..Hypnotic..Hypnotic..Supersonic..

"Arima Arima" begins with trumpets and a march past like rhythm. The lyrics eulogize Enthiran in this mandatory hero worship track (இவன் பேர் சொன்னதும், பெருமை சொன்னதும் கடலும் கை தட்டும்!!). Hariharan and Sadhna Sargam are apt. Wait for the movie to release to see the impact this song is gonna have! One for the music channels!

"KiLimaanjaaro" is for me the weak link in the album. Paa. Vijay's lyrics are mostly quite pedestrian in comparison with the other songs in the album. We have heard such descriptions of the heroine atleast once in some context in the past. Nothing new! Again, lets wait and see if Shankar can work his magic with the visuals.

"Boom Boom Robo da" sung by Keerthi Sagathia, Swetha Mohan, Tanvi Shah and Yogi B (yeah! Kajah Balm!) is a passable track with lyrics that sound repetitive after listening to all the other songs in the album.

Rahman manages to strike a neat balance between the tastes of both his fans and those of the Superstar leaving enough and more space for Shankar's imaginative visuals.

I am ready to welcome Enthiran-the Robot!

Kadha Thudarunnu-Music Review

Sathyan Anthikkad is back with his next and so is Maestro ILaiyaraaja. The film stars Sathyan's favorite Jayaram with Mamta Mohandas.

Much like 'Bhagyadevatha', their (Sathyan-Ilaiyaraaja) last outing, 'Kadha Thudarunnu' also has (only) 3 songs.

1. Aaro Paadunnu Doore in the voices of Hariharan and Chitra is mellifluous. The piano bit towards the end is beautiful. I am not sure of Hariharan's malayalam diction. Took me a couple of listens to get used to it. But its his voice that adds value to this song. If it were Madhu Balakrishna or Vijay Yesudas this song may not have had the impact it ends up delivering. The next track suffers precisely coz of this reason.

2. Mazhamekha Chelin Pooram sung by Vijay Yesudas and Swetha is the typical duet you have heard often in the Sathyan-IR combo in recent times. One for the music channels. The heavy synth doesn't help much either.

3. In his last outing for Bhagyadevatha, Karthik got the brilliant "Aazhi Thira Thannil". Here he gets the peppy "Kizhakkumala Kammalitta". He does a neat job. A decent listen this.

The quality of recording is poor and is quite obvious. Takes away a lot of sheen.

Despite that 'Aaro Paadunnu' is my pick of the album.

The audio cd also features karaoke versions of these tracks apart from some of Sathyan-IR hits from Bhagyadevatha (Allipoove, Thira Thannil), Innathe Chintha Vishayam (Kando Kando, Manassiloru), Rasathanthram (Thevaaram).

A routine fare from the Maestro.

Rettachuzhi-Music Review

Rettachuzhi has generated quite a bit of hype coz of the unusual casting. K.Balachander and Bharathiraja will be seen together on the big screen for the first time in this flick directed by Thaamira and produced by director Shankar's S Pictures.

To add to it, the audio was released last week by Aishwarya Rai Bachchan!

Its always good to see someone like Karthik Raaja's name on the album. I liked his work in Achchamundu Achchamundu last year, especially the RR proved why he is considered by many to be supremely talented. Being talented is one thing and to convert the form into a big one when it matters is another (are you listening Mr.Yusuf Pathan?).

Karthik Raaja's talent was quite evident right from the days he shared credits with his illustrious dad in Ponnumani and Pandiyan (Ei Vanjikkodi and Pandiyanin Raajiyathil respectively). His Kaasumelae (Kaadhala Kaadhala) was no less than a trend setter. He followed it up with some brilliant work in Dumm Dumm Dumm and shone in bits and pieces in Kudaikkul Mazhai (who can forget the haunting Adiyae Kiliyae in the Maestro's voice), before fading into oblivion. As they say you are as good as your last hit in the big bad world of cinema! A few mediocre works here and there didn't help his cause either.

So Achchamundu Achchamundu was a comeback of sorts for this talented composer and hence the inninngs to follow obviously raises expectations, specially when the team he is playing with is an all star (atleast most of them) team.

On to the songs..

'Poochaandi Kannazhagi' has 2 versions one by Belly Raj (Kangal Irandaal fame) and Rita and another by Hariharan and Shreya Ghoshal. Quite a let down this one! The lyrics are quite unimaginative and pedestrian (erukkam poo mookkazhaga!! what?!). Belly Raj sounds so Ilaiyaraaja-ish in his rendition. Maybe Karthik wanted his dad to sing this version.

'Ada Bumm Bumm' is where the album gets a little interesting. Reminds one of the composers Ullaasam days. Very pleasant listen with neat arrangements. Rita and Violin Padma do a good job of the vocals. The violin interludes are the high point of this track.

Rahul Nambiar and Deepa Mariam (again of Kangal Irandaal fame) breeze through 'Para ParakiLi'. You get to see the talent of the composer in the fresh arrangements. The violin pitching in with a classical melody bit in the second charanam is so typical of Karthik Raaja. Watch out for the 'naarara reerara' from Deepa. Beautiful! Welcome back Karthik!

'Pattaalam Paarada' begins on a interesting note with the child chorus. A minute later you feel the tune meanders aimlessly and gets a touch noisy. The interludes are pretty well arranged, but that doesn't save the track and you end up hitting the 'next track' button sooner than later.

The pick of the track of course is the melodious 'Naan Endru Sol'. Again, there are 2 versions to this haunting track. One by Hariharan and the other where he is joined by Haricharan and Sriram Parthasarathy. This pathos track(s) has some beautiful moments with crystal clear rendition by the singers.

The beautiful usage of violins and arrangements, so typical of his dad proves yet again that there is quite a lot left in this talented composer, if only, he uses the opportunities effectively. But there is still something missing for this one to set the charts on fire. Reminds me of Yusuf Pathan's blazing 37 ball ton that went in vain. How I wish he finished it off himself without leaving it for the others?! Yeah! he was run out! wasn't he?