96 (Music review), Tamil – Govind Vasantha

Anthaathi could easily be called a celebration of love. Right from Karthik Netha’s fascinatingly beautiful exploration (“Ithyaadhi Kaadhal” is particularly interesting, literally meaning, “et cetera love”!), to C.Prem Kumar’s poem (narrated by actor Nassar) that imaginatively anthropomorphizes love, the words are stupendous! Govind’s tune is another story altogether! The serene way it starts with Chinmayi and Govind’s vocals, the manner in which the mildly throbbing rhythm takes over oh-so-slowly, paving way for a splendid chorus… to introducing Bhadra Rajin’s ethereal interlude and reintroducing the chorus to end with the song’s title… the tune is hugely likeable!

Pradeep Kumar’s deeply involving voice literally envelopes you in The Life Of Ram, another impressive tune, with Karthik Netha scoring big yet again with lines like “Karai Vandha Pirage Pidikkudhu Kadalai, Narai Vandha Pirage Puriyudhu Ulagai”. In Yaen, Gowri’s sweeping voice underscores the tune’s searing sadness, while in the other mellow song, Vasantha Kaalangal, Mithun Raju’s superb Latino-style guitar and Chinmayi’s voice offer a brilliant interplay. Thaabangale has that Latino tinge as well, with Mithun very well again on the guitar, but the tune is built around longing, in Uma Devi’s lovely lines, and Chinmayi and Pradeep’s voices. Iravingu Theevai, the other song featuring the duo has that theme around longing too and Rajesh Vaidya’s veena is a legitimate third voice with its scintillating sound! These two songs offer music that literally drapes around you, much like Ilayaraja at his peak!

Kaathalae Kaathalae, in both versions, builds on the teaser theme to an atmospheric, goosebumps-inducing experience akin to walking into a dense mist and when Govind’s flute arrives, your vision clears and you find something absolutely wondrous! Govind Menon seems to be having a much better luck with the name ‘Govind Vasantha’ since this is easily the best Tamil soundtrack of the year (yet)!

Keywords: 96, Govind Menon, Govind Vasantha, 300, #300

Listen to the songs on YouTube:

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