Music Review: ‘PK’
Super director and hit maker Rajkumar Hirani is back finally with ‘PK’. Since his all – time classic and blockbuster ‘3 Idiots’ (2009) he has been working on developing the next comic drama with which he can not only make audience’s laugh and cry but also spread a simple humane message of goodwill and ‘PK’ is the result of it. Highly anticipated, this could easily be the biggest all-time hit considering his past record and his aptitude to move hearts through his films. And considering he makes films without any masala with pure talent of his cast and team, his films truly deserve the name and awards they pull. With his constant charm Boman Irani and combining the powers of Aamir Khan from ‘3 Idiots’ and Sanjay Dutt from his ‘Munnabhai series he has the perfect cast on board to create another success at the box office. Hirani is also famous for his choice of music in his films that is emotive and very situational filming an important position in the script. The team of Shantanu Moitra and Swanand Kirkire did a brilliant job in ‘3 Idiots’ and are back on this project with the addition of one song each from Amit Tiwari and duo Ajay – Atul. Shantanu has not been too successful recently doing the score for films like ‘Mardaani’ (2014) but the influence of Hirani and Aamir with the backing of Vidhu Vinod Chopra could just about be the formula to create great melodies in this album.
Starting with an Ajay – Atul composition called Tharki Chokro, the fun element is totally clear with this character driven song. Almost a Gujarati party tune, it is a good fusion of folk and modern Bollywood arrangement. The use of big brass trumpets is quite well done on top of a great Dholki beat. Sung by Indian Idol star Swaroop Khan, whose vocals have the rawness of his Rajasthani origins that sounds amazing on this song. The lyrics by Kirkire are very well written centring around the main character who is referred as Tharki Chokro who is a guest in the town and his different personality. Kirkire paints a very good picture of the protagonist if you listen closely. Overall the song has a dance number composition but considering its folkish arrangement and vocal the song could do well on radio but not otherwise. Good song nonetheless and worth listening to.
The beautiful voice of Shreya Ghoshal fills the speakers next with Nanga Punga Dost. Shantanu keeps it simple and cute on this composition with fun violins to the simple beat and acoustic guitars. The violin work is quite refreshing and very well done. The main instrument of Shreya’s voice is the real soul of the song and totally effortless. The lyrics are a fun version of Behti Hava sa tha Woh from ‘3 Idiots’ which talks about the amazing things PK does and influences people around him. The song has a situational setting because of which PK is referred to as Nanga Punga Dost. This is not the title song or perhaps the most important song in the album but a decently good listen.
Shaan and Shreya get together next for a love ballad called Chaar Kadam which is a super sweet track that makes your heart melt. Shaan’s vocals themselves are good enough to do the magic but then add Kirkire’s classic lyrics on top and this is a clear winner that is magical in my ways. The arrangement by Shantanu is fantastic and to the point while keeping the song simple and very melodic. The reverberation on both the vocals give the song so much depth making this one of the best romantic songs of the year with a very simple thought of walking 4 steps together with your lover no questions asked. Amazing!
Love is Waste of Time in the voices of Sonu Nigam and Shreya Ghoshal is another simple romantic song that highlights the innocence and purity of PK’s character and him trying to fight falling in love but decides to do it anyway. The thought in the lyrics by Amitabh Varma is simple but describes the character’s predicament well of his journey and whether to fall in love or not. Sonu’s vocals are spot on and his pronunciation of waste = bhaste is nicely done and is the characteristic hook of the song. This is an interesting song to listen to and fits perfectly in a Hirani film.
Bhagwan Hai Kahan Re Tu is the sad religious song in the album in the voice of Sonu Nigam who renders it really well with his depth and going up to the very high notes. The lyrics by Kirkire highlight the desperation of the character as he talks to the almighty in his efforts to find him and understand his situation that he finds himself in. The composition is typical for his genre so no innovation from Shantanu here but over all this is a tearjerker.
The melodic voice of Ankit Tiwari is heard next on Dil Darbadar. His vocal is perhaps the best on the album as he bares the character’s soul in this heartbreak song. The composition by Ankit is a far departure from the rest of the album and clearly stands out. The instrumentation is far more modern with an urban beat and lot synth use. The use of sarangi is just exciting as it blends perfectly with the vocal and beat texture of the song. Lyrics by Manoj Muntashir are worth listening to closely as he puts a great rhyme to the pain of a heartbreak. Very nicely done. Must listen!
PK Dance Theme is an instrumental piece composed by Shantanu and the title theme music for the film heard in all the film trailers so far. It has the lightness of a comic film character and is very innocent in its melody. Shantanu gives the song good pace as well as he advances it nicely within a short 2 odd mins span.
FINAL WORD
As expected, Hirani does not disappoint with the music of ‘PK’. He keeps it focused on the character and the situations in the film. The songs themselves say a story and take you on a journey as the album progresses. Shantanu does a really good job overall with the music and surely delivers the vision and attention to detail that Hirani looks for in his team.�� Char Kadam is perhaps his best work on the album that can be the big song of the album on radio and is purely blissful to listen to. His talent to keep music simple but emotive is very credible. But Ankit Tiwari takes the cake here with just one song Dil Darbadar that is very well done vocally and on composition front and the one to listen to on repeat. Ajay ��� Atul do a good job as well with Tharki Chokro that has some amazing vocals by Swaroop Khan. Vocally everyone does a great job from Sonu Nigam to Shreya to Shaan and Ankit himself giving a lot of depth and meaning to all the beautifully written lyrics by Kirkire, Manoj and Amitabh. Overall the album is very well defined and has a lot of character to it. But does it have oomph and charisma to be heard again and again in the long run? Maybe not so much��_ That�۪s where Hirani�۪s visualisation and strategically using the songs in the film�۪s story will make them memorable and even more impactful from what the music directors have delivered. On the whole this is a good album to listen to.
BizAsia Showbiz Rating ��� 8/10
