Raja Natwarlal: Music Review

 Music Composer: Yuvan Shankar Raja

Starring: Emraan Hashmi & Humaima Malik

The music of Raja Natwarlal has high expectations from the beginning. The Hindi music album not only has Emraan Hashmi's name behind it, but also South Indian music director, Yuvan Shankar Raja's. To raise the bar even higher the film's namesake the critically acclaimed, Mr.Natwarlal, which had a weighty music score with, Pardesia. Raja Natwarlal, starring Emraan Hashmi and Pakistani actress, Humaima Malik, is a romantic comedy, so expect a fusion of fun and passion. 

Raja Natwarlal's soundtrack begins with Bollywood's favorite singer, Arjit Singh, singing Tere Hoke Rehengay. This song starts slowly at first with a slow piano and slowly melts into slow electronic beats. Our music director sticks with the usual Hashmi style of his former K.K songs, with the "Ooo ooo" that we saw in "Zara Sa" from Jannat 2 and "Tu Hi Meri Shab Hai" from Gangster. This songs toggles between dramatized keyboard, electronic beats, and guitar, and evolves into a Western classical song as the percussion picks up. There is quite a variety of instrumentals in this songs that are brilliantly swirled together with Singh's strong vocals, leaving nothing wanted. A truly unique song. 4.5/5

Yuvan Shankar Raja really brings in the South Indian flavor into Dukki Tikki. This fun dance number is exactly something you would expect to see in a comedy. Expect an interesting video paired with this one. Complete with whistling and horns, this song is one of the more pleasant different sounding songs that Mika Singh has done before. 5/5

The unconventional qawwaliesque number Kabhi Ruhani Kabhi Rumani is by far the best song on the Raja Natwarlal soundtrack. Intricate classical instrumentals pair beautifully Benny Dayal's voice to breathe life into the song. Just like Tere Hoke Rehengay it transforms dramatically, but in a more refined elegance. The slow tabla playing in the back with skillful chimes and piano sets this song apart from the typical qawwali number. 5/5

We have found Raja Natwarlal's item number in Namak Pare. Our music director is again able to offer something new to the table, utilizing popular singers Mamta Sharma and Anupama Amod in a different way. This song fuses Western instrumentals, classical Indian instrumentals, and the classic South Indian song. Anupama's voice works well to complement Mamta Sharma's voice, although he doesn't get much in. From the beginning this song is able to hook the listener. 5/5

The songs of Raja Natwarlal takes an unusual turn with Flip Your Collar Back. It is very catchy, and offers variety like its predecessors, but the hook of the song doesn't seem to work exactly. Perhaps because it gets really gritty and annoying with the "Flip your collar back off to the sides". This song seems like it could potentially turn into a popular dance craze, like Dhinka Chika, but it does not play too lightly on the ears. 2/5

Tere Hoka Rehengay (reprise) is sung by Shweta Pandit. This song tends very acoustic, and the softer beats allow Pandit's voice to shine brighter through. This song is refreshingly a lighter take on the original song, and besides the lyrics is not very similar from the original. As good as, if not better than the original song, this song truly shines as one of the masterpieces of the soundtrack. 5/5

Raja Natwarlal's soundtrack is by far one of the best of this year.The precision of the soundtrack surpasses all of Emraan Hashmi's previous soundtrack With almost every song having the potential to become a hit, this movie should propel further in cinema. Yuvan Shankar Raja does an amazing job of pulling all different types of genres and musical elements together to create a skillfully produced album. 

My Picks:  Kabhi Ruhani Kabhi Rumani, Tere Hoke Rehengay (reprise), Dukki Tikki, Namak Pare, Tere Hoke Rehengay 

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Daawat-e-Ishq: Music Review

  Starring: Parineeti Chopra & Aditya Roy Kapur

Music Composer: Sajid - Wajid

Daawat-e-Ishq, or Feast of Love, is a romance about a young saleswoman, Parineeti Chopra, and Aditya Roy Kapur, a charming young chef who woos her with his spicy kebabs and greasy naan. The music is composed by the Yash Raj banner favorite, Sajid-Wajid, who gave us Ek Tha Tiger, and just like other Yash Chopra films the standards are high for this one. This sweet romance brings in seasoned favorites like, Sonu Nigam, Sunidhi Chauhan, Shreya Ghoshal, and Javed Ali, who each have dozens of classic romance songs under their belt. Daawat-E-Ishq promises a lot more than it has to offer. 

Daawat-e-Ishq's album kicks off with a classical style qawwali title track that  has already been recently sending waves across Indian cinema. Daawat-e-Ishq ropes in Javed Ali in his comfort zone, utilizing all his vocal capacity with alaps. Tabla combines beautifully with harmonium among other  instruments to add further to the complexity of this song. This song tends to sound a little too much like a title track, as it is very conversational, making it a more situational number. However, as the song progresses, Sunidhi Chauhan jumps in and the pace increases. 3.5/5

Mannat, Daawat-e-Ishq's core song features Sonu Nigam, Shreya Ghoshal, and Keerthi. The instrumentals are richly done in this song, as the title song. However as rich as these instrumentals are, this song instrumentals are not multilayered, offering variety. Offering a touch of the Middle East, this is a Sonu song entirely, with bits and pieces of Shreya and Keerthi. This song is a little more serious in tone than one what expect from this type of romantic song, but nevertheless is a welcome addition to the soundtrack. 4/5

In the Mannat (reprise) Shreya Ghoshal and Sonu Nigam trade places. She is now the lead singer, and does a great job in Nigam's shoes. Sonu Nigam takes the backseat in this one, however it is still a fantastic song. Depending on your singer preference, either duet is good. They are both equals in vocal talent. 4/5

Sounding like a typical Holi song, Rangreli, brings in lots of traditional Indian instruments, like dhol, alongside brass instruments, and brings in a lot of scraps from the title track into the melody. The drumming is heavy, and Shreya Ghoshal's voice is playful and intertwines well with Wajid's voice. Although this song is a burst of fun, and has excellent use of instrumentals, there is nothing really distinct about this song in the end. 3/5

Shalmali Kholgade enters the Daawat-e-Ishq soundtrack with Shayarana. This female solo is the least intricate of all the songs in this music soundtrack. It is the typically strong female song we have seen from the Yash Raj Camp, like Jazba, though lacking the overall energy. The strange guitar beats, snapping, and Shalmali Kholgade's Western sounding singing when she says the "Shayarana ooo oo " hook, brings in a cheesy inspirational country hook into the song that make it sound very Western and contemporary, making it different from the rest of the soundtrack. 2.5/5

The music gets back on course once again with a rock infused classical song, Jadu Tone Waaliyaan by Shabab Sabri who does an excellent job of classical performance. The electric guitar portions seem to overwhelm the traditional portions, as well as the strange use of a saxophone midway. Not really a harmonious merging of East and West, but not horrible either. 3/5

The Daawat-E-Ishq instrumental is a good background music for the album, but is not something to focus on entirely for listening pleasure. It goes in too many directions to listen to alone. Although, it sounds less complex than the original song, it really doesn't offer anything for the listener to do anything with. 2/5

In the end, the Daawat-E-Ishq soundtrack is not really a feast of love, or a feast of superb music for that matter. It doesn't have horrible songs, but it doesn't really have enough good songs to be considered a remarkable album. For so many skilled singers and products, Daawat-E-Ishq's soundtrack did not live up to the Yash Banner expectations of good music.

My Picks: Mannat, Mannat (reprise), Daawat-e-Ishq

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Kick: Music Review

Starring: Salman Khan, Jacqueline Fernandez, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, & Randeep Hooda 

Music Composers: Himesh Reshammiya & Meet Bros Anjann

Himesh Reshammiya is continuing on with his 2014 Bollywood escapade in Salman Khan's latest film, Kick, after the musical disaster that was Humshakals. Alongside him, are the Meet Bros Anjann still rivaling in the Hate Story 2 success of Pink Lips.  In this 12 track Bollywood music album, we see repeats of several songs. Having multiple versions of songs seems to be the trend in Bollywood as of late. We have also been seeing many actresses and actors stepping up to the plate and singing behind mike, like Shraddha Kapoor in  Ek Villain and Shruti Hassan in D-Day. Salman Khan lends his vocals to the Kick soundtrack. His leading lady, Jacqueline Fernandez, and co-stars Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Randeep Hooda, unfortunately, have not contributed to the vocals of this album. 

The Kick soundtrack opens with duo Mika Singh and Palak Mucchal's Jumme Ki Raat. This is exactly the type of song we would usually see Mika Singh in. Himesh seems to be sticking to these desi folk compositions, like Humshakal's Khol De Dil Ki Khidi, also sung by Mika Singh. However, Reshammiya definitely improves on this song injecting it with more life, and making it sound like a pumped up version on Bodyguard (title track), whistling included. Muchhal's vocals come across as decent, but weak. Sunidhi Chauhan, or a stronger female vocalist would have been the prime selection for this kind of song. The winning instrument is,in fact, the Shennai.  Jumme Ki Raat (Version 2) Remix amps up the drums and base, making the song much more enjoyable than the original.  3/5 & 4/5

Jumme Ki Raat (Version 2) features Salman Khan and Palak Muchhal as the vocalists. It is exactly the same as the original version of Jumme Ki Raat. Sadly, Salman Khan does not excel above Mika Singh here. He seems a bit pitchy, almost screaming the lyrics and unable to reach the heights that Singh took it to. Jumme Ki Raat (Version 1) Remix also the same as the Mika Singh's remix version, instead featuring Salman Khan. 3/5 & 3.5/5

Salman Khan is able to redeem himself  in Kick with the duet Hangover . The song is surprisingly mellow for the title, Hangover. Shreya Ghoshal and Salman Khan's voices melt into one another in Meet Bros Anjann composition. This Kick song is multidimensional as this starts as a high class track with the violins preceding Khan's voice, and evolves into an R&B style song as they repeat "Hangover". Perhaps, Hangover, was not the best word choice, as it detracts from the quality from the song, but as in Meet Bros Anjann style they do title this Hindi song with a English word. Thankfully, it wasn't anything like Pink Lips, Pinky or Baby Doll. Something in Hindi seems to be the better choice for Kick, but somehow this track doesn't disappoint too much. 3.5/5 

Hangover (Remix) keeps Salman Khan and Shreya Ghoshal, but adds an additional, and arguably unnecessary layer of beat to the song, detracting from the orginial beauty of the song. 3/5

Hangover Promo Video

The Hangover is redone in Hangover (MBA Swag). This version is the kind of version you would expect from Hangover combined with Swag. The violins and guitar are stripped from this version and are replaced with EDM fused with Punjabi style Desi Beats. We see the some Hindi rapping from the Meet Bros Anjann additionally. This song does detract from Salman Khan's original, and tends to work on the nerves after some time. 3.5/5

Tu Hi Tu is the second romance song in Kick, featuring rising singer, Mohammad Irfan. Irfan has been up an around the scene, making his territory with Banjaara from Ek Villain. His vocals are just as impressive as his previous songs. Light and airy, he sings this song solo, reaching incredible highs and lows with his voice. This song has a light tone, beginning with piano, and having light guitar and violins later on. Extremely tasteful. 4/5

However, the downside of this song has six versions that I will pay little attention to. So the Tu Hi Tu (Version 1) also by Mohammad Irfan, kicks off with a rap and then a reggae, and R&B beat. No. 2/5

Neeti Mohan also has her own version, Tu Hi Tu (Reprise) and Tu Hi Tu (House Mix). Her reprise version is identical Mohammad Irfan's version and is on par with his vocals. The House Mix takes an EDM reggae twist, that is not at all feasible for this type of romantic song, and uses words like "Grind on Him" and "Shine on Him". 4/5 & 2/5

The third set of versions of Tu Hi Tu are done by Salman Khan, in Tu Hi Tu 2 (Version 2) and Tu Hi Tu (Version 2) Remix. This song doesn't match to Mohammad Irfan's version, but isn't horrible either. Khan's voice sounds a little raspy here and isn't as smooth as Irfan's original vocals. This fortieth Kick remix the same as Mohan's remix and just as bad. 3/5 & 2/5

Yaar Na Miley featuring Yo Yo Honey Singh and Jasmine, is surprisingly the only song that isn't remixed on the Kick soundtrack. This is supposedly the item number of the soundtrack, with Nargis Fakri as the main dancer, which is pretty much all she is good for at this point in her career. This EDM song is a little bland, and offers nothing we haven't heard before. Lyrically, like all item numbers, the item girl is boasting how great she is. Yo Yo Honey Singh's rap is the only bright part of this soundtrack, however he is only it in for a little bit of time. 3.5/5

In the end, Himesh Reshammiya outdoes himself in the Kick soundtrack. Despite the album being weighed down with multiple remixes, this Hindi soundtrack is able to come out as a winner. The soundtrack will definitely help promote the soundtrack, but according to history a Salman Khan movie can't be a failure during Eid. 

My Picks: Tu Hi Tu, Jumme Ki Raat (Version 2) Remix, Yaar Na Miley, Hangover

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