Week 180: On Spotify | On YouTube
14 songs this week! All the songs are available on both YouTube and Spotify.
Jalwanuma – Heropanti 2 (A R Rahman) – Hindi: Whoa, this was a pleasant surprise! A very, very tuneful and classically filmy song from Rahman in a Tiger Shroff film! The lilting qawali style backdrop works mighty well, and the singers—Pooja Tiwari and Javed Ali—are fabulous.
Vaa KaNakku – Manmatha Leelai (Premji Amaren) – Tamil: Beyond all the on-screen shenanigans by Premji, I have always found him to be a very, very adept composer from the limited body of work he has produced. In Vaa KaNakku, he delivers on that promise again very, very confidently! That rhythm he concocts is incredibly addictive and the tune has a naughty edge to it, in line with the film’s theme. For some reason, Ajay Krishnaa sounds and perhaps imitates Udit Narayan, though it goes well with the tune. But Swagatha S Krishnan handles it in her usual, normal way that works perfectly.
Oh Reba – No Entry (Ajesh) – Tamil: When the song started with ‘Oh Reba Reba’ and a generous sprinkling of English words evoking Vaali’s lyrical style, both the tune and lyrics seemed less than interesting. But Ajesh turns the song around with his ‘Kanna pinna manasukku’ hook and after that, the song remains consistently interesting! I was a bit surprised he didn’t rope in the film’s lead, Andrea as the singer, and instead got in Jonita and Benny Dayal. Both do a terrific job, of course. Ajesh has been consistently promising and deserves better opportunities as a composer.
Colours of Love – Partner (Santhosh Dhayanidhi) – Tamil: When I heard the soundtrack of Partner, I had shortlisted 2 songs for the Weeklies addition – Raati and Colours of Love. Then I had a feeling that Raati sounded very familiar – figured eventually that Santhosh was reusing his own 2018 Madras Gig single 
So, only Colours of Love for the Weeklies! There was a shade of Harris Jeyaraj, I thought, probably owing to the prominent flute phrase, but Santhosh has something original here. His choice of roping in Sean Roldan for the lead vocals is very, very good. Swetha Mohan adds weight too, as the song progresses and Santhosh layers the song with some brilliant strings in the interludes.
Elamalakaadinullil – Pathaam Valavu (Ranjin Raj) – Malayalam: Based on Ranjin’s previous work, I had expected more from this song. It does have a fantastic melody that Haricharan delivers wonderfully. But when the rhythm started, it sounded a bit too templatized. But don’t let that stop you from listening to the song given how good the tune and singing is.
Udd Gaya – Lekh (B Praak, Jaani) – Punjabi: B Praak has been credited for ‘music’ while Jaani has been credited as ‘composer’, so I’m not entirely how it works. But this is a gorgeous song, with a heartwarming lilt. B Praak’s voice is, as usual, incredibly powerful and carries the melody wonderfully.
Ghei Chand Makarand, Kaivalyagaan, Bindiya Le Gayi, Le Chali Taqdeer, Ram Ram – Lori (both male and female versions), Vithala… Darshan Deun Jaa & Aaj Sugandh – Me Vasantrao (Marathi): I heard the songs from this magnificent labor of love last month and have been desperately trying to get the complete credits since it includes original songs composed by Rahul Deshpande as well some traditional songs too. Suffice to say, my limited musical knowledge (if I can even call it that) doesn’t offer me any words to appreciate this film soundtrack’s music. All I can say is that I find the soundtrack incredibly, incredibly pleasing. I know that’s hardly a review or even a statement but that’s the best I can add If you have even a passing interest in music, do give this phenomenal album a try.