While it didn’t match up to the diversity and quality of music that May had to offer, the month of June did manage to get quite a few tunes right! Let’s delve into them right away!
Selfie Le Le Re and Bhar Do Jholi – Bajrangi Bhaijaan
Music: Pritam
Singers: Vishal Dadlani, Nakash Aziz, Badshah & Adnan Sami
Pritam returns to composing after a hiatus of one year (his last album was Holiday). And boy, he doesn’t disappoint! The songs are bereft of the templates that we’ve come to associate with him.
Selfie Le Le Re is annoyingly catchy. It’s one of those songs you don’t want to like, but you just can’t help sing along! As always, Vishal Dadlani is a master at getting the energetic, fast-paced number just right. Nakash Aziz supports adequately, with a rap by Badshah to boot. The lyrics and the video make clever use of the selfie craze, while also giving a tribute to Bajrangbali. (On a side note, only in India will you find a movie about a Muslim actor playing a devotee of a Hindu god, named Bajrangi Bhaijaan, and releasing on Eid!)
Adnan Sami returns to singing after the delightful Sweeta (Kill Dil), and as always, it’s a delight to hear his unique, husky vocals. Bhar Do Jholi gives a much-needed boost to the qawwali genre. With an 8-minute runtime, the song builds up tempo beautifully, ably supported by Kausar Munir’s poignant Urdu words. This is the kind of song which will have a powerful impact on the big screen.
The entire album is not even out yet, so we can definitely expect more from Pritam next month!
Teri Masumiyat – Bezubaan Ishq
Music: Babli Haque
Singer: Altamash Faridi
Babli Haque makes his Bollywood debut as composer with Bezubaan Ishq. He gets Altamash Faridi (of Dil Mera Muft Ka fame) to sing a slow-burn romantic ditty. Despite borrowing heavily from this song, Teri Masumiyat stands out in particular due to Faridi, whose earnest singing brings out the pathos of the song perfectly.
You can listen to the entire song here.
Title Track and Sooiyaan – Guddu Rangeela
Music: Amit Trivedi
Singers: Amit Trivedi, Divya Kumar & Arijit Singh, Chinmayi Sripada
After the superlative piece of work that was Bombay Velvet, Amit Trivedi is back with a short album in a relatively unknown movie. However, as expected, he doesn’t disappoint.
While Mata Ka Email (which, incidentally, is not a Trivedi composition) is in the news for all the wrong reasons, the title track of Guddu Rangeela is signature Amit Trivedi. The synth sound is taken straight from Allah Meherbaan (Ghanchakkar), as is Divya Kumar, who’s become immensely consistent this year.
After the second interlude, the song takes a different route, with Trivedi and Kumar permitting themselves to yodel! All in all, it’s a delightful result!
You can listen to the entire song here.
Sooiyaan is a breezy listen, with a sweet, muted tune. Arijit is allowed to dominate, and he’s predictably strong. However, Chinmayi’s vocals are the ones to listen. Easy on the ears, Sooiyaan is a winner.
You can listen to the entire song here.
Dheevara (English Version) – Bahubali (Telugu)
Music: M. M. Kreem
Singers: Ramya Behara, Adithya
While much has been said about the opulence and the money spent on Bahubali, the music has been overlooked. Veteran composer M. M. Kreem however does an outstanding job. A period epic is never an easy job to do, so much so that Bollywood has traditionally left it to A. R. Rahman (Lagaan, Jodhaa-Akbar, Mohenjo-Daro). The English version of Dheerava seems like an absolute misfit in a Hindu mythological film! However, as a standalone song, it stands out! There’s an eclectic mix of sounds here, with the drums and guitar complementing each other beautifully. The backup singers too are commendable, giving the song a grandiose feel.
Blasphemous Balderdash 