Lage Raho Munnabhai - Music Review

By: Joginder Tuteja, IndiaFM

Wednesday, July 26, 2006

The team of Munnabhai MBBS is back with Lagey Raho Munnabhai. Sanjay Dutt, Arshad Warsi, Vidhu Vinod Chopra and Rajkumar Hirani - all the usual suspects are there but as far as music is concerned, things are a little different since Shantanu Moitra, who earlier composed for Vidhu Vinod Chopra's Parineeta, is roped in instead of Anu Malik, who was the composer for the first in the Munnabhai series. With Swanand Kirkire [the lyricist who got into limelight with Parineeta] being the major contributor as the song writer, one plays on to check if the album surpasses the score of Munnabhai MBBS which picked up only after the film became a box office hit!

The sound of whistle that comes at the beginning of the title song Lage Raho Munnabhai [and is also heard as a part of the chorus throughout the song] comes quite close to the signature tune of Titan watches. Well, apart from this similarity the song pretty much stays original and is in sync with the mood and theme of the film. Remaining true to the 'tapori' character of Munnabhai, the song is about the search of Munnabhai for his ideal woman! Vinod Rathod, who has been the voice for Sanjay Dutt for many a numbers, does a good job once again in this feel-good track that should enliven the proceedings on screen. The remix version that marks the end of the album has Shaan coming in place of Vinod Rathod. With a carnival feel given to this entire song orchestrated with western arrangements, it entertains yet again with Shaan making his presence felt.

Enjoyed the camaraderie of Sanjay Dutt and Arshad Warsi in Munnabhai MBBS? Then get set to relive the moments and enjoy further on with both coming behind the mike for 'Samjho Ho Hi Gaya'. Yet another 'tapori' number written by Swanand along with Farhad and Sajid, it has Sanjay Dutt sharing his experiences about his new found love with Vinod Rathod seamlessly taking over the singing part and both Dutt and Warsi interspersing the song with their one liners quite well. More than the rendition or the music, it is the lyrics that impress most as they tell a funny story with promise of a humorous picturization. Just like most of the tracks in the original film, this one too is mainly designed for the situation and does pretty well in that.

Its carnival time yet again with 'Aane Char Aane' that makes one nostalgic about yesterday's hit 'Saare Ke Saare Gama Ko Leke' from 'Parichay'. The similarity comes from the fact that both the songs are 'raaga' based and still carry a contemporary touch with. First Hindi film song by Karunya, who was the runners up in talent hunt show Indian Idol 2, 'Aane Char Aane' has Vidhu Vinod Chopra himself as Swanand's writing partner and is simple situational with a nursery rhyme flavor to it that also repeats in a calypso-based 'remix version'. And yes, Karunya is indeed quite good with no hint of this being his first playback number. One wonders though that on whom would the track be picturised since Karunya has a very sweet voice that neither fits well with Sanjay Dutt nor Arshad Warsi!

Vidya Balan, the lead heroine of the film, may have been wondering all this while if she would get a single track to dance along! Well, she may not really be dancing along with 'Pal Pal Har Pal' but gets a good enough opportunity to impress all over again with her varied expressions as she lip-synchs to Shreya Ghoshal's sweet voice. One of the most melodious tracks to have been churned out this year, 'Pal Pal Har Pal' again follows the nursery rhyme mode and turns out to be an excellent composition. This love song with Sonu Nigam as Shreya's male partner has a certain freshness to it that makes it a notch above the rest. Sweet-n-simple, play this song to your toddler and he/she is surely going to enjoy it in a big way. Kudos to Shantanu, Swanand, Shreya and Sonu to have made this number happen!

As a kid you must have caught the patriotic number 'Aap Bachcho Tumhe Dikhaye Jhanki Hindustan Ki' [Jagriti] on good old Doordarshan. Now its time to get nostaligic all over again as the same tune is used as the base for 'Bande Mein Tha Dum - Vande Mataram'! The song is dedicated to 'Father Of The Nation - Mahatma Gandhi' and his power that made the mightiest of all get down on their knees. While Sonu Nigam takes the lead in the song, he is well supported by Shreya Ghoshal and Pranab Biswas who provide the background vocals. Yet another situational track for which an 'instrumental' also follows next, expect it to make an impression in the narrative.

Except for 'Pal Pal Har Pal', which is a love song, rest of the tracks are all situational but guaranteed to work well while the film is on. While a soundtrack like this may not be the best bet for turning out to be a massive commercial success, it works in an all-important area of taking the story forward. Expect the sales to show an upwards trend after the release of the film and its subsequent (expected) success!