Drunk on Omkara
An above than average score that you will enjoy if you have a flavor for Vishal’s cinematically visual music and Gulzar’s poignant poetry and play of words in a rustic setup. One is tempted to wonder as to why his music does not excel despite every ingredient being there. May be its time Vishal, the composer gives way to a different, independent composer which might also free and not interfere with the creative faculties of Vishal, the film maker.
Beedi
Made to click, this number performs within its set borders of the ‘item’ genre. And it does impress with some innovations in an otherwise low-scope ‘pataaka’ number. The words “padosi ke chulhe se aag lai ley” loudly and proudly announce that it is a Gulzar number. Reminds one of some of the yesteryear the tracks he had done with RD Burman and Asha Bhosle. Sukhwinder provides the fillers with his now trademark rhythmic voice, which can easily substitute any bass guitar back-loop.
Laakad
Vishal revisits his obsession and successful teaming-up with Rekha, the singer, who also happens to be his wife. Together, they have created some beautiful songs in a class of their own in films like Maqbool (Rone do), Chachi 420(Ik who din bhi they), and the famous pop track- Tere ishq mein.
This one too falls in the same class, but one does feel the lack of growth from the afore-mentioned tracks. The class is there, but where do we go from there?
Emotionally, the song creates images of a post-tragedy situation, a theme very typically Shakespearean.
Naina thag lenge
Mysticism blended with purity. Slowly the cartwheel gains momentum as the song picks up in tempo. Obsession with Naina. Post midnight croonings with a touch of Sufism and desert lost-love feel.
A touch of betrayal, a betrayal that the heart readily agrees to. A pleasure detachment.
Eyes that take me through to the heavens and back, make me dream the clouds that would never rain. I still can’t afford to trust the eyes. It befuddles the rain.
Naina thag lenge. Naina baawra kar denge.
Nainon ki mat maanion re naino ki mat sunio.
They will con you and entice you and dupe you and rob you of your sleep.
The song cries, don’t love me. I am not yours.
Namak
Mujra in flesh and blood. A naughty flavor. A dramatic feel to a cinematic situation. Reminiscent of the ravines of Madhya Pradesh. Does not go any further than the rustic simplicity. The only exciting thing about the enterprise is the vocals and the words. The sparsely present electronica do not succeed in hiding themselves amidst the rural, raw orchestration. This leads to the ‘polluted’ soul of the song. Would have been much better with a truly sparse ensemble.
However, there is a strong possibility of the song growing on you.
O Saathi Re
Classic melody enveloped in morning hues. Typical Vishal feel of being brilliant but yet not out there in terms of emotional stamp. Sounds more like a remix of a 50’s track, thanks to the better experimental lounge remixes done lately.
Gives a thematic feel with the use of a piano.
The quintessential Vishal strings are very much here too. Shreya Ghoshal sounds more like Mahalakshmi. Gulzar could have done away with the incessantly used Mukhra.
Omkara
An ode to the small town ‘daaru ka theka’, the song works at a multitude of levels. An infectious beat and a haunting chorus makes this a sure shot winner. The lyrics need a couple of listenings to interpret though. Though, one might not even think of doing that given the pleasant flowing track of the Mukhra.
Vishal gets everything correct and in place in this one. Makes a perfect driving companion too. There is an undercurrent of the glorification of evil too, more towards the latter half. An impressive orchestration which elevates instead of overshadowing Sukhwinder’s magical vocals, which seem to have been tailor made for the song, or rather vice versa.
The Tragedy of Omkara: Theme Music
Not a very true visualization of a great tragedy like Othello. Falls below expectation, more so considering the neat work Vishal has done in the past with the themes of Maachis and also to certain extent, Maqbool (another film that lacked the primary attention of an otherwise infallible composer)
Beedi
Made to click, this number performs within its set borders of the ‘item’ genre. And it does impress with some innovations in an otherwise low-scope ‘pataaka’ number. The words “padosi ke chulhe se aag lai ley” loudly and proudly announce that it is a Gulzar number. Reminds one of some of the yesteryear the tracks he had done with RD Burman and Asha Bhosle. Sukhwinder provides the fillers with his now trademark rhythmic voice, which can easily substitute any bass guitar back-loop.
Laakad
Vishal revisits his obsession and successful teaming-up with Rekha, the singer, who also happens to be his wife. Together, they have created some beautiful songs in a class of their own in films like Maqbool (Rone do), Chachi 420(Ik who din bhi they), and the famous pop track- Tere ishq mein.
This one too falls in the same class, but one does feel the lack of growth from the afore-mentioned tracks. The class is there, but where do we go from there?
Emotionally, the song creates images of a post-tragedy situation, a theme very typically Shakespearean.
Naina thag lenge
Mysticism blended with purity. Slowly the cartwheel gains momentum as the song picks up in tempo. Obsession with Naina. Post midnight croonings with a touch of Sufism and desert lost-love feel.
A touch of betrayal, a betrayal that the heart readily agrees to. A pleasure detachment.
Eyes that take me through to the heavens and back, make me dream the clouds that would never rain. I still can’t afford to trust the eyes. It befuddles the rain.
Naina thag lenge. Naina baawra kar denge.
Nainon ki mat maanion re naino ki mat sunio.
They will con you and entice you and dupe you and rob you of your sleep.
The song cries, don’t love me. I am not yours.
Namak
Mujra in flesh and blood. A naughty flavor. A dramatic feel to a cinematic situation. Reminiscent of the ravines of Madhya Pradesh. Does not go any further than the rustic simplicity. The only exciting thing about the enterprise is the vocals and the words. The sparsely present electronica do not succeed in hiding themselves amidst the rural, raw orchestration. This leads to the ‘polluted’ soul of the song. Would have been much better with a truly sparse ensemble.
However, there is a strong possibility of the song growing on you.
O Saathi Re
Classic melody enveloped in morning hues. Typical Vishal feel of being brilliant but yet not out there in terms of emotional stamp. Sounds more like a remix of a 50’s track, thanks to the better experimental lounge remixes done lately.
Gives a thematic feel with the use of a piano.
The quintessential Vishal strings are very much here too. Shreya Ghoshal sounds more like Mahalakshmi. Gulzar could have done away with the incessantly used Mukhra.
Omkara
An ode to the small town ‘daaru ka theka’, the song works at a multitude of levels. An infectious beat and a haunting chorus makes this a sure shot winner. The lyrics need a couple of listenings to interpret though. Though, one might not even think of doing that given the pleasant flowing track of the Mukhra.
Vishal gets everything correct and in place in this one. Makes a perfect driving companion too. There is an undercurrent of the glorification of evil too, more towards the latter half. An impressive orchestration which elevates instead of overshadowing Sukhwinder’s magical vocals, which seem to have been tailor made for the song, or rather vice versa.
The Tragedy of Omkara: Theme Music
Not a very true visualization of a great tragedy like Othello. Falls below expectation, more so considering the neat work Vishal has done in the past with the themes of Maachis and also to certain extent, Maqbool (another film that lacked the primary attention of an otherwise infallible composer)
posted by humanprojector at 4:28 PM
1 Comments:
Kind of late to be leaving this comment, but, any particular reason why you left out the review of "Jag jaa ri gudiya".
Your reviews make an interesting read otherwise.
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