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Dus and Jaaniya are loaded with sloppy, uninspiring techno sounds. Gourov Dasgupta does better in the ballad-style Aaja Soniye, with interesting vocals by Sudhanshu Pandey. Mika’s Nachle Soniye is pedestrian, while Gourov’s last, O Maahiya sounds pretty groovy. Bappa’s Mushkil kushaa is outdated with only Kshitij’s voice to hold on to, and Kaala peela is marginally better of the two Shafqat composed tracks. Anand Raaj Anand scores with a pleasant Bin tum but his other, Bhula diya barely registers. The third CD with actors reciting Gulzar’s heartfelt poems amidst serene ambient music is infinitely better than this 4 composer soundtrack.

Note: Mushkil kushaa is by Bappa Lahiri, Bappida’s son. The two Shafqat Ali Khan composed tracks have been ‘produced’ by him as well. Thanks to Arun who pointed this. Post edited appropriately.

Keywords: Rice Plate - Shabana Azmi, Naseeruddin Shah; Lovedale - Soha Ali Khan; Gubbare - Nana Patekar, Natassha, Sameer Dattani; Matrimony - Arbaaz Khan, Mandira Bedi, Sudhanshu Pandey; Zenzi - Vivek Oberoi, Tanushree Dutta; Highway - Jimmy Shergill, Neha Dhupia; Zahir - Aftab Shivdasani; Gupshup - Esha Deol; Accident - Anupam Kher; Sex on the Beach - Dino Morea; Rise & Fall - Sanjay Dutt, Arjun Rampal, Phew, Taking a deep breath, Too many cooks.

Naan tharai nila is refreshingly fresh and pleasing, accentuated well by Svetha Mohan’s vocals and some scintillating violin pieces. Alaigalin osaigal ups the ante even further - one brilliant package of lovely lyrics, neat voices and excellent backgrounds. Ranjith and Chinmayee’s Edho senjapulla plays out like vintage Rahman and has addictive chorus phrases. Ellorayum yethipoga conveys the angst and hopes of refugees in a fairly interesting folksy tune while in Netrirunthom OS Arun tries to do a MS Viswanathan (a la Vidai kodu engal naade) with terrible results. After a lackluster debut in Kalaaba Kaadhalan, Niru’s music has evolved exceedingly well.

Keywords: Raameshwaram, Raameswaram, Jeeva, Bhavana

Jigiruthanda has a curious confluence of sounds and a rather cheesy, hummable tune! Nellayile mannedutha starts off like a dated village track, but goes on to be a groovy, techno folk ditty. Vayasu ponnukku is high on catchy backgrounds but the tune plays out ho hum - Mahalaxmi Iyer sounds good in Tamil too! Yuvan’s hip hop fix resurfaces in the nifty Vaanathayum megathayum - Haricharan scores big time while musically the composer is in super form, while Nee nee nee’s overpowering sound is actually quite hip. Machakkaran has Yuvan innovating pretty well in his sound mix along with some trendy tunes.

Keywords: Machakkaaran, Jeevan, Kaamna Jethmalani, Kamna

Ellaa pugazhum has stock rhythms but the tune, lyrics and grand interludes make it up, while Ponmagal vandhaal remix rocks, especially the imaginatively handled anupallavi. Nee marlyn is terribly abstract with an excessive assortment of interesting sounds. Valayappatti is a Sillunnu oru kaadhal by-product, with bizarre interludes and Maduraikku pogaadhadee has an arresting thavil percussion with an assembly-line tune. Kelaamal kaiyile is spellbinding – gorgeously flowing tune on an appealing techno-wrap, with a tinge of retro darbaari kaanada on the Kettu rasitha bit! Rahman’s sound in ATM is dizzying but some of the experimentation seems to go overboard.

Keywords: A R Rahman, Vijay, Shreya, Shriya, Namitha, Azhagiya Tamil Magan, Alagiya Tamil Magan, Thamizh

The jhumka’s missing in Bareily’s bazaar again, in Aaja nachle, but its constant rhythm change and zingy folk mix is delightful - Sunidhi in top form! Ishq hua and Is pal are predictable, but sweet. Sonu, Shreya and the backgrounds make them endearing. Show me your jalwa is a riot - manic pace, Jaideep’s words and Richa Sharma doing an exhilarating job. O re piya takes a lilting, somber turn while Soniye mil ja sounds like an stagey, modern qawali. Koi patthar se is non-descript while Dance with me is outdated. Aaja nachle’s an excellent assortment of sounds from Salim Sulaiman!

Keywords: Madhuri Dixit, Kunal Kapoor, Konkona Sen Sharma

Indha ooril has some juvenile lyrics and an assortment of sounds which will put Kothavaalsaavadi to shame. Kovakkaara kiliye is terribly routine with the same ‘ol chords and hooks, barring that disjoint sound that plays occasionally in the background while Aayiram jannal is even more bland and stereotyped, extolling the virtues of a laaaarge family, in the most boring manner. Thoppul kodi is a prescription for insomnia and Onnappola is too corny and hackneyed to comment on. The lilting Otraikannaala is perhaps the only noteworthy track. Director Hari perhaps had a set agenda for music, but Vel is maha-stale.

Keywords: Surya, Asin

Pattaam poochi and Vaa endraal are at least 20 years old and stale. Vayasu pasangala continues the dated feel but is at least rhythmically catchy with some existential rambling on the purpose of colleges. Malathi manages to be incredibly coarse in the utterly silly Goyang while Simbu extols the virtues of the titular college reasonably well in Parangi mala. The composer is supremely annoying in Wine shoppula while he redeems himself beautifully in the honey-coated melody En meesai sooriyan sung by Mathangi! But for this track, producer Anbalaya Prabhakaran seems to be stuck hopelessly in his Vaigaasi Porandhaachu days.

Keywords: Jayam, Jeyam, RP Patnaik, Palanippa Kalloori

With a truckload of interesting references, Johnny Gaddaar proves that audiences need not be treated as dumb asses looking for juvenile fun and that they do not mind getting sucked into the vortex of an intelligently crafted thriller, provided the screenplay is appropriately coherent. Dharmendra’s Sheshadri is mature and nuanced with some ace dialogues while Vinay Pathak and Zakir Hussain make for a zingy cat and mouse combo. Debutant Neil Nitin Mukesh is the only sore point, with two expressions - one completely blank, and the other, a half smirk which perhaps refers to his amusement that he has been chosen for this project. Ashwini Kalsekar as Vinay’s wife is fantastic even in that limited role. The other highlight is the way music is blended without being an irritant and the fact that every scene is constructed in such a way that there’s a second layer to it that makes us go, ‘Hey, this director is smart’, a lot of times. The ending is both punchy and convincing, bringing together all the threads with a complete bang – literally. Johnny Gaddaar is one of the best films to have hit Bollywood in a long time! Don’t miss it, and spread the word!

Keywords: Dharmendra, Sriram Raghavan, Shankar Ehsaan Loy

Adnan Sami’s effortless rendition of the jazz-toned Jab bhi ciggaret (!) is mesmerizing. The trance version pumps up the pace to manic speeds, sacrificing the nuances, but Sunidhi steps in to add a terrific new dimension. Rekha Bhardwaj gets a Telugu-styled chartbuster in Phoonk de’s club mix, complete with an addictive, non-stop rhythm and techno-styled interlude intrusions. This one’s predictably catchy with Rekha’s always trusted vocals. In comparison, Sukhwinder’s original version is shorn of the desi-mass style and plays it in serious, underground mode, taking it to an almost ominous level. Deva Sen Gupta’s Ash tray starts off rather strange, with that English word not able to fit itself into a otherwise chaste Hindi number, but Vishal’s tune flow and fab backgrounds makes it a compelling listen. After Paanch’s Tamas, what’s with Deva and poignant, philosophical numbers…though he has far superior material here to work on. Kash laga is the sure-shot pick of the album - an joyous, earthy folk tune expertly weaved between Sukhwinder, Daler and a mildly effeminate voice, most probably the composer himself, as credited! With Vishal Bhardwaj and Gulzar, the results can only be daringly different and supremely entertaining. As usual!

Keywords: John Abraham, Anbumani Ramadoss, Union Health Minister, Ayesha Takia, Bipasha Basu, Cristiano Ronaldo

Paisa has that marked Euphoria influence, only more unrefined. Out of the other 5 Shomi-composed tracks, the techno-heavy Azaadi and Sooni Andheri impress the most, the latter in particular, for an interesting assortment and use of the orchestration. Also, almost all of Shomi’s tracks have annoyingly poor vocals. In comparison, all 5 Arnab-composed tracks are much better, tune wise - but continue the indifferent or embarrassingly bad singing. Sawan, Jhigi jhigi and Aye the are the pick of Arnab’s repertoire. Yagna’s debut album is predominantly amateurish but they seem to have the capability to pull off better stuff.

Keywords: Indipop