EK THA TIGER music review: World music with a Bollywood tadka!

Music: Sohail Sen, Sajid-Wajid
Lyrics: Kausar Munir, Anvita Dutt, Neelesh Misra
Singers: Wajid, Sukhwinder Singh, Shreya Ghosal, Mohit Chauhan, KK, Palak Muchhal, Tarannum Malik
Rating: ***

Everything about Ek Tha Tiger is on a huge scale – produced by Yash Raj Films, starring two of Bollywood’s biggest stars, Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif in the lead, and exotic locations, larger than life stunts and visuals that spark lively interest.

The music has to be on the same level too and Sohail Sen has been given the responsibility to do just that. He uses a variety of sounds and instruments, aptly so, since the film has been shot in various international locations including Istanbul, Dublin and Havana. Guest composers Sajid-Wajid have been roped in to compose the song Mashallah.

The album kicks off with Julius Packim’s Tiger’s Theme – a racy, suspense inducing track that’s typical of thrillers. Interspersed with East European sounds, it’s full of electronic grooves and digital beats. It will surely be an effective background score as action unfolds on screen. Yet, it leaves you with a ‘been there heard that’ kind of feeling.

Guitars, violins, bongos and drums lead you into Banjaara. The marching effect (due to the foot tapping) invokes great rhythm. But it has a very obvious Dil hara (from Tashan) hangover, especially since both the songs have been sung by Sukhwinder Singh. The orchestration and the chorus add loads of festivity to the number. The lyrics are average. Sohail Sen blends a mainstream Bollywood composition with Irish influences to come up with Banjaara – The High Kings meet Anu Malik kind of track! Looks like this one’s for the Dublin portion of the movie.

Lapata uses Latin rhythms and Spanish acoustic guitars for the authentic Cuban touch, since it has been set in Havana. The song was recorded locally in Cuba and the orchestration is of good quality. The chorus does well and newcomer Palak Muchhal matches up to KK’s vocals. Still, it comes over as a very average song, thanks to the ordinary core composition.

For Saiyaara, Sen keeps it simple and uses more traditional instruments like santoor and drums, keyboards and guitar. Mohit Chauhan brings loads of passion to the song. Tarannum Malik’s voice is refreshing and her low-key notes complement the high-pitched singing by Chauhan. It’s a song that you’ll start humming without even realising it, whether you like it or not. Lyricist Kausar Munir’s writing in this one is poetic. The use of the word Saiyaara – which means ‘lonely planet’ – has been done beautifully to portray the distance between the two lovers.

Mashallah is a straight lift from an Arabic wedding song. So no points to Sajid-Wajid for creating the best tune on this soundtrack! It’s a groovy and hummable number with Arabic lyrics by Kausar Munir. Wajid is decent, but Shreya Ghosal sings beautifully. She uses a husky tone and sounds completely in sync with the middle-eastern melody. Benny Dayal sings the Arabic portions with ease.

The zingy chorus intercepts the music. Use of Middle Eastern instruments like the hand-tapped tambourine, the djembe and the darbuka transports you to Arabic lands. The violin and finger cymbals add a new dimension. Mashallah is a winner!

The remixes of Lapata, Mashallah and Banjaara are nothing special and the song writing could have definitely been better. Don’t expect a Dabangg or a Bodyguard; the music of Ek Tha Tiger is meek in comparison. There is no item number and no playing to the gallery. Sen makes a good musical effort to create interesting sounds that set the backdrop for this thriller, and Salman Khan’s attitude can and will definitely make it work.

Karan Johar launches music of Shahrukh Khan's Ra One

Music launch: Shahrukh Khan marked the music of his much-awaited film Ra One

 Kareena Kapoor in Red saari, Looking very hot at music launch.

AR Rahman can't perform in Delhi

After his series of concerts around the world last year, AR Rahman is back in the country and has two concerts planned next month, one in Nagpur on May 15, and the other in Bangalore on May 29.

The original plan was to have a five-city tour instead of just two, which included concerts in Delhi and Ahmedabad. But here's the sad bit – even though Rahman was keen on having a concert in the capital, the unavailability of a ground minus any logistical hassles lead to Delhi being dropped.

A source says, "Delhi was one of the cities the concerts were planned for. But logistical issues always create problems for big events in Delhi. No suitable ground could be found. Either the price for the ground was too much, or getting permissions was extremely difficult. Plus, the cancellation of Bryan Adams' concert and his experience in the capital has become a huge lesson for musicians looking to perform in Delhi-NCR. Who wants to risk going through an experience like that? Agar itne bade firangi performer ko mushkil ho sakti hai, toh how can an Indian performer manage? Delhi's no longer conducive to any performance or a big entertainment event."

Rahman’s nephew to compose music for ‘Joker’

New Delhi, Feb 5 – Oscar-winning musician A.R. Rahman’s nephew G.V. Prakash Kumar has been chosen to compose the music for Bollywood fimmaker Shirish Kunder’s upcoming directorial project ‘Joker’.

‘A.R. Rahman’s nephew G.V. Prakash to compose music for JOKER. This will be his debut in Hindi. And our initiative to introduce new talent,’ Kunder posted on micro-blogging site Twitter.

Prakash, who is Rahman’s elder sister’s son, made his foray as a composer with Tamil film ‘Veyil’ in 2006.

He has also given vocals for some Tamil films like ‘Gentleman’, ‘Anniyan’ and ‘Unnale Unnale’, apart from having worked on some projects with his maternal uncle.

‘Joker’ will be Prakash’s first association with Hindi movies.

The movie boasts of actors like Akshay Kumar, Sonakshi Sinha, Shreyas Talpade and Minissha Lamba.

IANS

Sonu Nigam likes acting more then singh

Source: Sify Movies
Sonuis one of the most successful and popular playback singers in Bollywood, but it is acting that gives Sonu Nigam greater happiness.

Sonu, who started his career as a playback singer with Gulshan Kumar's Aaja Meri Jaan, also clarified that Kumar was not his mentor. "Gulshan Kumar gave me the much-needed break, but he was not responsible for shaping my career."

Sonu, who has won 33 awards for playback singing including the Filmfare award, says initially music directors were hesitant to work with him.

Sonu said he still gets acting offers, but can't accept them. "I am busy with my singing assignments which include shows, playback singing and private albums. Right now I am busy with my shows abroad and also a few albums. So, I have put aside my acting offers. But I am open for it and will perhaps do a project a year later."

"I admit my films did not do well, but my work was appreciated. Acting gave me great happiness. Not a single critic wrote bad things about my performance. I think it is better to be appreciated in a flop than to be a part of a hit film where your work is not recognised," said Sonu.
In the recent past, he had shows in Birmingham, London and Manchester in Britain and in various cities in the UAE.

"I was never the first choice for the best compositions. Music directors used to give all the good compositions to singers like Kumar Sanu, Udit Narayan and Abhijeet. I was only offered qawali or songs that needed a voice like Rafi," said Nigam, who has recorded the highest number of songs of Mohammad Rafi in T-Series's Rafi Ki Yaadein series. Today he is singing for top league actors like Shah Rukh Khan, Saif Ali Khan, Salman Khan and Hrithik Roshan, among others.