Daler Mehndi’s latest album, Raula Pai Gaya is a wake-up call to the once popular dancing sardar, that he’s just one among the many vying for audience’s attention, unlike his heydays! Here, he shouts, wails, pours his heart out and a few other things, much to the listeners’ annoyance – since the tunes are tediously repetitive. Barring the pathos-laden Dholna, with its absorbing tabla infusion (credited to ‘Safaideen Saabri’ – is actually Rafiuddin Sabri!) and a differently conceived and composed Namoh namoh, the rest is amazingly unexciting. Daler’s lawsuit against Yash Chopra couldn’t have happened at a more opportune time!
Keywords: Daler Mehndi, Yash Raj Films, Shankar Ehsaan Loy, Sade naal, Tunak tunak