Zindagi opens as quite a standard package, but the melody and lilting arrangement make it an endearing listen, as it progresses. In Dil kyun yeh mera, the veteran composer creates a neat combination of a lovely tune and hip arrangements, even as he gets Vishal and Suraj to croon Tum bhi ho wahi, an instantly [...]

Naan nadanthal works only because of its appealing, stylish rhythms even though the lyrics are beyond mundane. Siragadikkum nilavu is archaic Manisharma material, with rudimentary catchiness, while Thamizhan veera thamizhan is loud, pointless and silly. The composer reuses his Telugu Billa chartbuster, Bommayi ,as Thanjavoor jillaakaari; Hemachandra repeats his role and infuses life into the [...]

After Raja Sen’s 5 and Rajeev Masand’s 4, I did have starry expectations out of Dibakar Banerjee’s Love Sex Aur Dhokha. After all, his Khosla Ka Ghosla was delightful, while he incredibly upped the ante in Oye Lucky Lucky Oye – so how wrong can he go in LSD? Turns out…very! The first thing is [...]

Ankur Tewari’s acoustic rich debut pop album holds some genuinely interesting tracks! Like Chand chahiye, Aaj kyon, Hum and Shehar mein, which are easy on the ear and even have you humming along the spunky, lilting arrangements. In the more mellow tracks like Musafir, Tujhe jaane and Shukriya, Xulfi’s terribly familiar sound acts as much [...]

There’s something still distinctly 90s indipop in Ranjit Barot’s music. And it permeates all through this soundtrack. Sahi bola and Aye dost have an easygoing street-smartness that would have wowed, a decade ago, but some of the nifty arrangements are woven quite well! The charming title song is the best of the lot, but Raja [...]

I was asked to pen a column for the March issue of RadioAndMusic magazine and I chose to write about my pet topic – music plagiarism in India. Here’s the magazine’s online version and here’s my column titled, ‘The bastardization of Indian Film Music’ (click on it for larger version).

Rashid Ali soars far above the predictable tune and orchestration in Keh do zara and infuses life into the ballad that seems vaguely modeled along Kabhi kabhi Aditi from JTYJN. It’s remix version too is quite a good listen! Nacha main evokes a generous dose of ennui, but it does hold an enthusiastic streak that [...]

Oh Girl you’re mine is an unfortunate opener to the soundtrack since it’s the least interesting song with a terribly lame pattern and predictable sounds. Then, the soundtrack delivers all the fun! Papa jag jayega makes brilliant use of Neeraj Sridhar’s vocals and that ultra-catchy hook, while the Dhanno-remix of Laawaris’ memorable classic adds neat [...]

Nooku nuggalu opens in typical Ravichandran fashion, borrowing sensuous rhythmic clues from Ilayaraja’s Maasi Maasam – but this is a fabulously catchy track; Tippu and Anuradha Sriram upping the heat! Suma Shastry’s O Beautiful Lady, barring the lyrics, does have an attention-grabbing tune, while Nee hanga nodabyada is the soundtrack’s pick along with the SPB-Chitra [...]

Pattaalam paaruda is generally enthusiastic, but barring the interesting interludes, the tune is just basic, while Ada bum bum is Karthikraja’s leftover from Grahan days – unfortunately outdated. Poochandi kannazhagi has 2 versions and both have the orchestration overpowering the vocals in a jaded tune. Naan endru is where the composer brings his true self, [...]