Music: A. R. Rahman

Lyrics: Prasoon Joshi

After the release of DIL CHAHTA HAI Aamir Khan became extremely selective in the roles he was offered. Since the 2001 release he’s only been seen in four movies! All of them creating massive curiosity at the box office and raking in a hefty amount.

GHAJINI will be no different. Promos already swamping television sets with one minute teasers are starting to create buzz all over. That and an A. R. Rahman song accompanied with Aamir’s questionable choice of wardrobe (better suited for a film such as DOSTANA) don’t exactly fulfill the entirety of the upcoming release.

AR Murugadoss is redirecting his earlier Tamil film also titled GHAJINI which incidentally was “inspired” from Christopher Nolan’s MEMENTO. Nolan’s highly acclaimed masterpiece from 2000 follows the story of a man with short term memory loss who attempts to find the killer of his wife.

With this type of premise one may expect to see more writing on the back cover of this album. Unfortunately, Rahman only delivers six tracks, where five are originals. Prasoon Joshi teams up with him for the second time since RANG DE BASANTI for the lyrics.

The album starts with Javed Ali joining forces once again with Rahman in ‘Guzarish’. Oddly enough Sonu Nigam is also featured on the track, must have been a previously recorded humming session considering the American resident has no reason to fly over to Chennai for such a small sample. A typical Rahmanish composition, both Javed Ali and Prasoon Joshi work well with Rahman. The composition isn’t too “experimental”, there’s a strong melodic tone reminiscent that of ‘Saathiya’ (though not sampled or inspired from). Highly effective, yet simple. Hopefully Javed Ali will gain even more success than his previous venture with A. R. in JODHAA AKHBAR.

Straying away from a soft romantic number, Rahman goes back to his basics with an instant foot tapper in ‘Aye Bachchu’ with Suzanne as the lone singer. The power chords in the background help ensure a pop rock feel, with a Rahman stamp. This 180 from the opener makes for an enjoyable track mainly appealing to the younger crowds. The lyrics are definitely not the highlight, they do suit the style of the song however.

‘Tu Meri Dost Hai’ was appropriate exposure for Benny Dayal into a stream of hit songs. Yet the duo of Shreya Ghosal and Benny in ‘Kaise Mujhe’ does not meet the mark. With an extremely slow pace and Dayal’s lack of control on high notes makes this almost six minute song unbearable. Shreya’s role on the track is unfortunately limited and comes towards the end, forcing the listener to hear Benny’s obnoxious voice. Joshi’s lyrics are somewhat innovative, but fall under that cheese ball of every other romantic Hindi song. An instrumental version is presented as the album closer and makes for a better listen (there’s no Benny Dayal!).

Following a similar tempo as ‘Guzarish’ Rahman throws caution to the wind and goes all out in ‘Bekha’. There’s no constant rhythmic structure, rather a more jazz/blues feel. The pseudo-improvish composition contains itself without going overboard. Just when you think Rahman is pulling off an Igor Stravinsky, he ropes the listener back in with the initial verse that’s more conventional. Karthik is rarely seen as the lead of any song, let alone being the only singer. His calm and cool voice only enhances the experience. Let’s hope Rahman’s grooming will give him more exposure for the future.

If a music director can only offer five original tracks then at least show some versatility so the listener may have a feeling of fulfillment. ‘Latoo’ is another fast paced number along the lines of ‘Aye Bachchu’ but with less originality. Shreya Ghosal (normally known for her romantic duets) shows us a different side, but leaves no lasting impression.

It’s disappointing to see only five tracks for one of the most awaited soundtracks of the year. However there is quality attached to at least three of these songs. Below par on Rahman’s standards, yet decent in comparison to rest of the films. Key Tracks: ‘Guzarish’, ‘Behka’ and ‘Aye Bachchu’.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

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