Milliblog Weeklies – India’s only multilingual, weekly, new music playlist.
Week 305: YouTube | Spotify
Pinjara – Bandar (Amit Trivedi) – Hindi: Good old vintage Amit Trivedi! But surprisingly, the one who steals the show is lyricist Sudip Sharma who lands some of the most poignant and provocative thoughts into startlingly simple idioms… about how so many things in life cage us! Amit singing is, as always, pitch perfect, and the enthusiastic rhythm that he envelops the melody in almost makes it a cage for the tune too!
Tujhko – Cocktail 2 (Pritam) – Hindi: As I started listening to the song, I thought it was nice enough, but not all that unique to make me add it to the Weeklies this week. But then, in the antara, I suddenly hear Sunidhi singing along with Arijit (“Tu hi toh aasmaan…”)! It’s still Arijit’s soaring melody all the way, but the way the understated way Pritam introduced Sunidhi almost like an undercurrent made a big difference to the song’s tone. Of course, Sunidhi owns a couple of lines in the end without Arijit and so well, as usual (with a lovely chorus in the backdrop, and Arijit joins in). Nicely designed melody!
Fraud Payale – Con City (Sean Roldan) – Tamil: Beyond Sean’s simple tune, Mohan Rajan’s lyrics truly stand out all through the song. When Sublahshini sings, in the anupallavi, ‘Nee vera poNNa paatha, veriyaairuven Da G…’, I burst out laughing, not just at the inappropriately appropriate usage but also the subsequent dialog that explains the usage 🙂 Sublahshini’s vocal range is perfect for this song!
Aathi Raasathi – Karuppu (Sai Abhyankkar?) – Tamil: Beyond the generally too-busy/noisy songs in Karuppu, it is songs like Athu Thalore (a tout a l’heure) and Aathi Rasathi that gives me hope that Sai is here to stay in films (beyond his pop music career). The layering in this song is pretty amazing – there’s so much happening in terms of the singing itself. The place where the ‘Aathi Raasathi’ hook lands, there’s another almost contrasting background vocal layer that competes for attention. But together, they amplify the pathos element wonderfully.
Hai Re – Itllu Arjuna (Thaman S) – Telugu: Oh wow! What a delightful song with so many layers! Anirudh’s singing is excellent, of course, but Thaman truly has some hugely imaginative phrases, particularly that carnatic vocals addition by Sanjana Chinamuthevi. The flow of the tune is fascinating. It starts with a sedate music + melody combination, moves to the ‘Na Kanulu’ high, and then introduces the Carnatic layer almost like it was the end of the arc. So I was wondering where the ‘Hai Re’ hook is going to land, and then Thaman lands it with a lovely punch, as the 4th element in the already grand scheme! But even inside this hook, he offers a false closure in the keyboard and extends it brilliantly!
Vadhalane – Chennai Love Story (Mani Sharma) – Telugu: A throwback to a different time of tune-making! Mani Sharma produces a qawali’esque melody that has Javed Ali acing the delivery. It almost sounds like I was listening to something from the early 2000s!
Priyasakhi – EPIC First Semester (Hesham Abdul Wahab) – Telugu: The familiar, likeable Hesham engine pleasantly chugs along predictably without making it too much! Thanks also to KS Harisankar’s committed singing and Lalit Lalluri’s flute, of course.
Kara Kaviyaathe – Chinna Chinna Aasai (Govind Vasantha) – Malayalam: The sweeping melody that I associate with Govind’s music is on full display here! Abhijith Anilkumar’s stupendous singing lifts the song significantly.
Shatha Shathamaanagalinda – Graamaayana (Poornachandra Tejaswi) – Kannada: It’s good to hear Raghu Dixit’s voice being used so aptly in a film song after quite some time! Composer Poornachandra Tejaswi builds the tune gradually towards the ‘Nooru Devaranella’ breakout and Raghu delivers it in his customary booming voice beautifully.
Sajna Ve – Prateeksha Srivastava (Hindi/Indipop): Pretty impressive composition that starts off in a predictable manner but then infuses an almost Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy’esque soundscape. That ‘Meethi boli’ (by the male chorus) is a lovely touch!
Isharey – AtharvaMusic (Hindi/Malayalam/Indipop): There was an almost Ilaiyaraja’s quality to the backgrounds when the song started! And then Atharva introduces the ‘KaNmaNiye’ Malayalam lines (sung by Tanvi Joshi) and amps up the song’s feel considerably! More than the actual melody, the background music was the one that really drew me into the song – it feels busy enough but also in perfect sync with the core melody.
Pocha – Sublahshini (Tamil/Indipop): Good to see Sublahshini composing her own song. She’s definitely one of the most interesting new voices in Tamil (and Southern) film music and her composing on her own so early in her career is a great sign. The song is quirky enough to warrant attention, with a zany sound I associate with Sean Roldan’s musical style. In fact, I imagined Sean’s raspy voice singing this tune it seems to fit perfectly 🙂
Pattukutti – Arivu (Tamil/Indipop): Arivu’s lullaby to his to-be-born child! Though it sounds less like a soothing lullaby (despite the ‘Aarariro’ refrain) and sounds a bit too upbeat to wake up the child, it still is a nice listen. With enough verve, it actually sounds like something that the child want to dance to (when it grows up).
Kaadhal Yaathiriye – Rudh Prakash? (Tamil/Indipop): I recall writing about Rudh’s debut, Maara Makka, as a Sai Abhyankkar clone back in November (16) 2025. I continue to hold the same view in this song too – everything sounds like Sai… the singing, composition, everything! It has a Jackson-style flamboyance that keeps it entertaining, though.
