Hitman – April 2, 2016

Originally published in The Hindu.

Is She With You? – OST, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (Hans Zimmer & Junkie XL)
One of the most lauded parts of the much derided film that is Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is the brief presence of Wonder Woman, played by Israeli actress and ex-army combat trainer, Gal Gadot. What adds to her aura as an Amazon warrior is the pulse-pounding music that Hans Zimmer and synth/electronica musician Junkie XL (real name: Tom Holkenborg) provide for her character. ‘Is She With You’ (oddly titled after her male colleagues’—Batman and Superman—banter!) booms with a goosebumps-inducing wailing electric cello that is Tom’s signature by now, but also wrapped in Zimmer’s rumbling percussion.

Ee shishirakaalam – Jacobinte Swargarajyam (Malayalam – Shaan Rahman)
The Shaan Rahman-Vineeth Srinivasan combination has proven multiple times just how good their ‘tuning’ is. For Vineeth’s latest directorial, Jacobinte Swargarajyam, Shaan puts together a fine soundtrack topped by Ee shishirakaalam, an incredibly sweet tune sung by Vineeth and Kavya Ajit, amidst strings that evoke pleasant memories of A R Rahman’s Putham puthu bhoomi from Thiruda Thiruda.

Nee chepakallu – Sardaar Gabbar Singh (Telugu – Devi Sri Prasad)
Going the flow of the film’s title, if Devi Sri Prasad was asked, ‘Kitney tunes thay?’, he would perhaps say, with a sorry face, ‘Sardaar, do tunes thay!’, explaining his severe tunes drought. What he does have, to keep him in good stead, is a pulse on catchy, fluffy music that people instantly like. The Laxmikant-Pyarelal’ish lilt of Nee chepakallu is a great example. It has an steady, energetic rhythm and fantastic vocals by Sagar and Chinmayi to make it a hummable earworm.

Geleya geleya – Chakravyuha (Kannada – Thaman S)
We have come such a long way in the evolution of playback singing that it hardly is a job of someone who can sing. Yes, anyone can sing, thanks to advancement in digital technology. That comes across clearly in the fact that Telugu star Junior NTR—not known to be a singer, in particular, having sung 5 songs so far, for his own films—lends his voice to Puneeth Rajkumar in Geleya geleya. What works in favor of the song are two things – one, the novelty in the voice, much like A R Rahman unleashing Udit Narayan upon unsuspecting Tamil listeners long ago; and two, Thaman’s expert handling of the sing-along’ish tune with a neat hook.

Yethetho – Jackson Durai (Tamil – Siddharth Vipin)
Siddharth Vipin, who did a competent job in Vallavanukku Pullum Aayudham, produces a merely functional score for Jackson Durai, with at least one high, in the form of Yethetho. The song’s spritely melody is endearing and getting Karthik and Chinmayi to croon it is a great decision. Siddharth adds a catchy hook – that ‘padapadakkara’ line that works like a banter between Karthik and Chinmayi and also has a nice ghatam layer to go with it.

Comments

comments

Share