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Oooohhh.. This seems like an exciting project. Not just because Deepika Padukone is looking hot & Saif+Deepika are looking great together.. but because Imtiaz Ali is back after the smash hit Jab We Met. He made a superstar actor out of Kareena in that movie.. & now it seems she has recommended her boyfriend to the director man. I don’t really see the problem with that cause Saif can be brilliant if the role fits his profile (as demonstrated in Omkara & KHNK).

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Saif Ali Khan has gone a step ahead this time though & is not just acting but also producing Love Aaj Kal with Dinesh Vijan. He is also picked up the trick from Akshay & dressed Singh in this movie.

The trailers look fun & the star chemistry is looking good with a good light story line typical to an Imtiaz Ali movie.

Another factor prominent in an Imtiaz Ali movie is good music. Jab We Met’s music was ground breaking with songs like “Mauja Hi Mauja”, “Yeh Ishq Hai”, “Nagada Nagada” & the romantic “Tum Se Hi”. The man behind all of that is back on Love Aaj Kal. Pritam is the most sought Music Director in the industry & is back to prove why he is the man most in demand when it comes to making hits.. This time he is back with Irshad Kamil who he worked together with on the songs of Jab We Met & Aa Dekhen Zara.

NO doubt they all make a great team together.. but lets find out if their magic works yet again with the OST of Love Aaj Kal for the UK audience.

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REVIEW

Track 1 - Twist - This is a big one.. !!!!! A hit & a dance floor blazer in Neeraj Sridhar’s super style. It’s a cross of Nagin meets Panjabi MC with the Snake Charmer theme. The vibe of the song sounds similar to “Ab Toh Forever” from Tara Rum Pum but it is still a genuine hit. The lyrics are rubbish but the fun factor is so prominent that you wouldn’t pay attention to that and just do the “Twist”. This is for the clubs.. for weddings.. for birthday parties.. & for every damn party. Its now at the top of my DJ set list of must play songs.It is not as good as Mauja.. but Pritam sure is back to put this composition up there in that category.

We have a winner at the start of the album ladies & gentleman :)  Hit Hit Hit - 7.5/10.

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Track 2 - Chor Bazaari - This song is a care free.. give a damn to the world type of song. The musical texture is great with a smile beat pattern, trumpets, Spanish acoustic guitar & a touch of the village sound. The arrangement is superb with the drops & come backs with versatile use of instruments. To top all instruments are Neeraj Sridhar & Sunidhi Chauhan’s voices. They sound great together & you can feel confidence oozing out of Irshad Kamil as he beautifully plays around with words to give some good lyrics. I like this song as it has a soft feel with still a dancy grove to it. 7.5/10.

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Track 3 - Aahun Aahun - This is my favourite song in the album so far !! A different side of Pritam’s work that I have never heard before. He demonstrates talent competing outright with AR Rehman on this one. The vague guitar at the start leads into 70’s disco effects with Master Salim’s phenomenal Punjabi lyrics. If you have not heard of him before then look for a song called “Teri Sajni” and you will find out how talented this man is. The beat when it comes in shocked me like the beat in “Genda Phool” did. The fusion of Neeraj & Salim’s voice is genius along with great looping & vocal scatting effects. This is so 21st century with roots set in traditional Indian music. I love the lyrics too with a good mix of English, Punjabi & Hindi. Aahun Aahun is totally catchy & genius. Production at it’s best.. 9.5/10.

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Track 4 - Dooriyan - Pritam tries to create another “Tum Se Hi” style slow romantic number with Mohit Chauhan but does not do too well. This song does not have the simplicity of Tum Se Hi in lyrics & composition although it has great deep meaning lyrics. The music & arrangement are average with a good flute solo in the middle. Mohit’s vocals are great as usual but not the best. This song might work for some for not for the masses. 7/10.

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Track 5 - Ajj Din Chadheya - I somehow knew there will be a song like this in the album. Typical Pritam.. & thus he brings in Rahat Fateh Ali Khan. An almost acoustic romantic song for the background. Very basic instrumentation but very neat & calm.. Love the acoustic guitar work!! Good lyrics about a man talking to God about what he wants for his love & how badly he wants her. The combination of powerful lyrics with soft music & vocals is striking. Great job. 8/10.

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Track 6 - Thoda Thoda Pyar - Am hearing a good typical Mehndi night Ladies Sangeet type of a song after a long time. This one is different too with a good mix of Dholak, Tumbi & Dhol to typical Punjabi shouts from a good all female chorus. Sunidhi then takes the lead to give a true Bollywood song.. something like you would have last heard in the 90’s. No comparison to Pritam’s Punjabi song production skills as he is the best at that.. but what is worth noting is Irshad’s lyrics who creates a great Punjabi intro rhyme and main lyrics that fit the composition really well. A must play at all weddings in UK. A definite hit with the desi ladies. 7.5/10.

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Track 7 - Main Kya Hoon - This is probably the only song I don’t like on this OST. Doesn’t quite fit the bill. It sure add’s variety but does not seem to gel with the variety above. It’s got this trippy trance synth to a slower beat. It is something you would hear in a remix but definitely not in an original. The lyrics & KK’s performance are average too. Hate the vocal effects Pritam has used on KK’s voice. Skip this one please. 5/10.

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Track 8 - Twist (Remix) - DJ Sanj from US is back with Pritam after doing a dudd job in Aa Dekhen Zara. But this time he does a good job. I love this mix. This is the one that I have already started playing at my parties & it works beautifully with the crowd. People love it.. I love it… This is good with a double beat grove & female rap but still sticking with the Nagin style. Neeraj’s vocals sound much better here. 7.5/10.

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Track 9 - Chor Bazaari (Remix) - DJ Sanj goes the Reggae beat side for this remix. Although it sounds fair & doesn’t sound too bad.. but I din’t quite enjoy this one much. I could do without it to be frank. 6/10.

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Track 10 - Aahun Aahun (Remix) - Reggae done.. it’s Bhangra time.. !! :-D  I loved the original and now this remix thrills me too. Instead of taking Pritam’s innovative music, Sanj takes his innovative composition & Salim + Neeraj’s great vocals and blends them to a Dhol beat with Punjabi shouts. This now sounds like a normal song & not an innovative experiment. You can imagine this to be original & the other to be a remix. Both are great though. 8.5/10.

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FINAL WORD

Really Good - 7.5/10.

Bollywood has been waiting for a biggie this year. This is it.. !!

Love Aaj Kal is commercial Bollywood at it’s best this year. It has the big dancefloor number called “Twist”, the romantics “Dooriyaan” & “Ajj Din Chadheya” and the fun song “Chor Bazaari” & “Aahun Aahun”. A overall complete package of good commercial Bollywood music that the masses will like all over the world.

Pritam uses all his favourite singers like Neeraj, Rahat Fateh Ali, Sunidhi & Mohit Chauhan.. & they do not disappoint him. Pritam is back in form with some fantastic work in “Twist” & “Aahun Aahun”. These songs are already getting lot of hype and air play on Radio & TV. With the movie release (July end) & some good filming by Imtiaz for these songs.. they have the potential of being the biggest hits of the year !! Twist is going to be a rage..!

A must buy CD as it is total value for money and pure funnnn for the UK audiences !!

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Last movie that Sohail Khan produced was Partner –> super hit music !!

Last movie Puneet Sira directed was Jai Veeru –> Few hit songs !!

Last movie music director Dabboo Malik [Anu Malik's brother] worked on was Kisse Pyaar Karoon & Team-The Force –> All super flops !!

Why did Dabboo Malik step into the hit combination of Sohail Khan & Puneet Sira is unknown to me.. But my expectations from the soundtrack of Kissan just took a plunge into cold water because of his presence…

Hum Tumhaare Hai Sanam & Kasoor are the only two hits in his career and that too ages ago. Why does he still keep getting work is something we will have to decide after we listen to the music of Kissan.

With a cast of the likes of Jackie, Arbaaz, Sohail, Dalip Tahil, gorgeous Dia Mirza & the cute Nauheed Cyrusi the expectations are high from the music of Kissan. Also, the topic of the movie caters to the majority population of India that is farmers. It thus needs to have a total traditional feel to the soundtrack with a lot of Punjabi influence so it can appeal to the millions of farmers working in their fields and have this playing on their radio sets in the background

Let’s find out what this 6 track album has in store for the international audience…

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Review

Track 1 - Punjabi Munde - This track implies a decent start to the album. It sounds like a number of Bollywood Punjabi tracks with a bit of english rap. The beat is almost similar to Sambhale from Ek-The Power of One but this one is better for sure as it is more catchy with the ”Punjabi Munde honde hain kamal” punch line. The difference is with the number of singers on this track. Labh Janjua, Shakti Singh, Sunidhi Chauhan, Siddharth Singh, Parthiv Gohil, Earl D & Dabboo Malik himself give their voice but none of them stand out. It’s like a chorus throughout the song !! Nothing extra ordinary about the performances, lyrics [by S.R. Bharti & Kanwar Juneja] or composition of this song but I guess the video will decide if this song turns out to be a hit. 7/10 .

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Track 2 - Humko Rehna Hai - A typical Bollywood romantic song with stars running around in the fields in their traditional clothes.. mannn I can visualise the full thing…. Well the composition, instrumentation & arrangement of this song makes it easy to guess the sequence. The lyrics by Panchi Jalonvi are basic but conveys the message adequately. Shaan & Shreya Ghosal sound totally like villagers with their pronunciations & thus sweet in a way. It is not a hit song but not a bad one either. 5.5/10.

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Track 3 - Jhoomo Re Jhoomo - Yet another multi-singer number for a festive village scene. Ad Boyz, Abhijit Ghoshal, Tarranum, Sujata Majumdar, Pavni Pandey & Dabboo Malik sing the below average lyrics of Panchi Jalonvi. Althought this song is groovier than the Track 1 in many compositional & instrumentation ways it lacks decent performances by any of the singers in the huge list. This song can play well in Dandiya & garba parties but lacks overall commercial appeal. 6.5/10 .

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Track 4 - Neeche Sari Duniya - This might be the main title song of the movie & is with a religious twist. It describes farmers & the hard work they do in very suttle words penned by Salim Bijnori. What makes this song special are the vocals of Room Kumar Rathod. He is just the best for such thematic songs with his deep voice. He is supported by Harshdeep Kaur with the chants & harmonies. I love the instruments used & their arrangement in this song. Credits to Dabboo for that.. 7/10.

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Track 5 - Waqt Ki Dhoop - This is a short sad interlude for the intense dramatic scenes in the movie for the turning point in the script. Toshi sings this with determination in his voice as if he is feeling those emotions. Very well performed as you can feel the character. Lyrics by Panchi are good too. The music is basic but the chorus is deep & soulful. Short & nice.. 6.5/10 .

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Track 6 - Punjabi Munde (Remix) - We couldn’t have had a Bollywood soundtrack without a remix !! But frankly we could have done without this average ’sounding like million other remixes’ track… Brother number 3 - Amal Malik is responsible for this. But at least this can now be used by DJ’s in desi wedding sets. 6/10 .

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FINAL WORD

Simply Average - 6/10.

Well I can at least say Dabboo Malik can continue to get work in the industry as he can do a decent job unlike many others. But when it comes to doing something new or producing hits, neither HE nor this album go a long way. It’s purely an average listen with no big numbers. Lyrics, music composition & all vocals sound similar to many others that you have heard before. All songs are purely situational with relevance in the movie & thus at least make sense & are not out of place. Buy this OST only if you have a thing for early 90’s Bollywood sound.

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Yash Raj films is back with Aditya Chopra producing NEW YORK with a highly commercial cast of John Abraham, Katrina Kaif, Neil Nitin Mukesh & Irrfan Khan. The movie is directed by Kabir Khan who’s last directorial venture Kabul Express was a flop with average reviews & a couple of decent songs on the OST. But with New York your expectations are bound to be higher as it is first of all a Yash Raj movie.. then has the hottest cast in Bollywood right now.. is based in the most glamorous city in the world.. plus it has Pritam doing the music.. All in all it has commercial written all over it !!

But on the other side the agenda of the movie gets you wondering if New York is a commercial music hit maker.. If you don’t know what the movie is about.. have a look at the wallpaper above..

Cant spot it..?? Look closer…

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Yup.. so you spot the ghost of twin towers there & so you know the movie is about 9/11. Not really about the attack but the after effects on the life’s of 3 Muslim students in New York. I still expect the OST to be bright & fun with a few elements of romance & a few serious songs.. Lets find out if it actually sums up to our commercial value expectations..

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REVIEW

Track 1 - Hai Junoon - Doesn’t sound like the start of a commercial album.. Well maybe it’s not then..!! KK renders his soulful Yaaron style vocals but the overall performance is average all thanks to simple & average music composition by Pritam. It has the typical soft college rock style which might go with the movie story but is overdone & cliche in the music market.. Lyrics by story writer Sandeep Srivastava are good & hold the other elements together making it a fun listen.. but with nothing special.. 5.5/10 .

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Track 2 - Mere Sang - Another non-commercial song..! The flow of this album is telling me it is more of a off-beat serious style of a album rather than a fun up-beat Yash Raj type.

Sunidhi Chauhan sings this song using her softer tone & sublime style. It’s not the best side of her & sounds monotonous. Composition style & arrangement by Pritam are just about the same as Track 1 & million’s of other such songs. It lacks innovation.. not just on the music side but also on the lyrics by Sandeep. It’s a decent one time listen but you may not like to come back to it.. 5/10 .

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Track 3 - Tune Jo Na Kaha - Finally something different with still on the down-beat lounge style… n I like that style.. ;)  Mohit Chauhan’s voice does something to a song.. it creates a vibe & gives it the depth of feelings. A romantic ballad with good lyrics that are perfect for a chilled out evening, sitting in the balcony in moon light.. Try it :)  The composition is simple with a good arrangement of backing vocals, light string instruments & a neat flute solo. Overall the track works for me.. 7/10.

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Track 4 - Aye Saaye Mere - The Persian style of this song is the work of Pankaj Awasthi. He has composed & sung this song as well. It’s the song with a message that would play in the background half way through the movie in a sad sequence. Very situational with an intense vibe. The lyrics are by Junaid Wasi & are pretty good with a traditional poetic feel to it. It’s a good song but lacks commercial appeal because of it’s theatrical situational feel. Listen to the lyrics carefully.. “Na Koi Kaala Na Koi Gora.. Ik Rang hi Sabhi ko rang de“. 6/10 .

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Track 5 - Hai Junoon (Remix) - Remixed by Julius Packiam. I have never heard his work before but this is a good start. He plays around well with KK’s vocal harmonies at the start & concentrates on his vocals throughout the mix which is a good relief. The beat is simple & makes the original more fun to listen to. The song now has this energy that it needs to go with the feel & lyrics of the song. 6.5/10 .

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Track 6 - Mere Sang (Remix) - Julius does a decent job trying to revive this dead track. I dint enjoy the original at all.. but this is bareable. There is not much scope in the original to play around with & the best creative element that Julius could come up was to add a subtle tabla sample throughout with ‘Hai Junoon‘ shouts which mix well. 5.5/10.

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Track 7 - Sam’s Theme - Sam is John Abraham in the movie. The theme makes his character sound like a serious & troubled guy.. Doesn’t go very well with John’s glamorous girl man looks & charm. Sound like he is experimenting.. lol. Good in a way.. as we’ll come to know if he can act.. !

Caralisa Monteiro’s classic vocal harmonies are truly amazing while our remix man Julius Packiam shows he’s not just the one with beats. He can surely compose & deliver good theme music to the standards of Yash Raj films which is a common feature in most of their movies. I like this classic music piece as it has some really good orchestra work. 7.5/10.

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Track 8 - New York Theme - Electric guitar’s with tribal drums give this instrumental the intense feel that describes the movie for us.. NO it’s not a fun commercial film.. but rather a serious flick with a message to convey. Sounds like something I have heard before. 6/10.

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FINAL WORD

Average - 5.5/10

The soundtrack for New York is nothing special. It does not even have the basic elements of a Yash Raj movie. No fun dance tunes, no big romantic numbers & no Bollywood style biggies either. An off beat non-commercial album totally opposite to our expectations.. and it is not even outstanding in it’s off beat category. Ignore this OST as am sure you can do without it in your collection.

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Runway seems to be the movie with a lot of careers on it inspiring to take off to the skies. Actor Amarjeet could be another star in the making & is making a come back after a low budget flop back in 2006.

Its exactly the same situation for producer Reeta Shukla who is family to Amarjeet & partner in crime for the flow Iqraar in 2006. They seem to be taking another shot at making it big in Bollywood together.

Director Sunil Tiwari’s story is not quite different either with his directorial debut back in 2003 with a movie called 2nd October. He disappeared after that on the Bermuda Triangle & has some how found his way back to the Bolly land Runway.. lol. Lets see if he can take off skywards again..

Even all the supporting cast like Deepal Shaw, singer - Lucky Ali & cute Tulip Joshi need a hit somehow to be able to sustain in this industry.

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The only established person in the team is music director Shamir Tandon who has done projects like 99, Mission Istanbul, Superstar & also Page 3 back in the good ol days. He is known to strike an off beat sound..

Lets find out what he has done with lyricist Shabbir Ahmed on the soundtrack of Runway…

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REVIEW

Track 1 - Khuda Ke Liye - The album opens beautifully to the soulful voice of Mustafa Zahid [lead singer of Pakistani band Roxen] who sang the amazing hit “Toh Phir Aao” back in 2007 in the movie Aawarapan. The acoustic start of the song create an ambience around you with just his deep sufi rock voice. Shamir keeps the music simple with acoustic guitar & a simple drum pad beat. He lets Mustafa’s voice be the instrument & the medium for some brilliant lyrics by Shabbir Ahmed. This is the kind of a song you usually hear in a Mahesh Bhatt movie & is a definite hit. Am loving this track. Repeat .. repeat.. repeat… 8.5/10.

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Track 2 - Teri Yaadein Leke Dil Mein - A soothing romantic song with a simple melody that works. KK is back in the game with this song as he has been giving average performances in most songs these days. But this is definitely better. It is the not best of him but his voice fits perfectly in the entire setup of this song. The music is good as it relaxes you..  & the rest of the calm is induced by the lyrics. Romantic lyrics with a cross of Kishore Kumar’s “Musafir Hoon Yaaron”. Definitely worth a good audience & international radio airplay. 7.5/10 .

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Track 3 - Roshan Dil Ka Jahan - Now this is a disappointing song.. Nowhere as good as the above two although it has Shaan & Sunidhi providing the vocals on it. The reason I feel for this is the composition of the song. Shamir Tandon fails to give this song any character although it has decently good lyrics & vocal performances. Not my taste.. 6/10 .

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Track 4 - Pyaasi Machuriya - Another very crude item number by Sunidhi Chauhan & almost sounds like “Beedi” from Omkara on her vocals. Ravindra Upadhyay on the supporting vocals is totally wasted. The music is purely rubbish & thus in the final mix the music has been left in the background with full focus on the vocals of Sunidhi. But this song does not have any substance to it. It is neither fun nor sexy. The video will be crap too I recon… Skip this track & save yourself the misery. 4/10.

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Track 5 - Roshan Dil Ka Jahan (Dance Mix) - Now this is not as bad as the Track 3. The reason being they have changed the male lead singer to Raaj with Sunidhi on this. Somehow his vocals suit better on this melody. But the overall remix is average with not much future for it. 6.5/10.

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Track 6 - Teri Yaadein (Remix) - DJ NYK is one of my fav guys in the recent Bollywood remix circuit because of his deep electro house basslines. He makes a good team with DJ Chetas and they make some good stuff. This is one of them. They keep the original melody & excellent vocals of KK intact and just add a good electro beat & keyboard solo to it. It creates a good dancefloor vibe altogether.. & I love the drop in between with just KK’s vocals.. Love it overall & a definite track on forthcoming club mix CD’s…. 7/10.

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Track 7 - Khuda Ke Liye (Remix) - This is a good mix too !! A little too good & grows on you as you listen to it more .. but that is only if you have a thing for electro house cause this is purely Electroooo.. !! The overall psychedelic vibe is funky & a definite spinner in all house sets. Once the original song picks up & is labelled as a hit song.. this remix will become a cult for it. Make sure you ask the DJ to play this song next time to at a desi party.. in case he forgets.. Well done to NYK & Chetas. 8/10.

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FINAL WORD

Average on a whole with a couple of good tracks - 6.5/10.

The soundtrack for Runway is riding on 2 good tracks. Khuda Ke Liye is a definite winner with Teri Yaadein a close second. These two songs definitely deserve 15 MB space on your Ipod’s & your text requests to your favorite radio stations. Other than these 2 & their remixes, the rest of the album is a waste. Shamir makes an impression with the music on these 2 tracks while lyricist Shabbir does a good job on all of them. Mustafa Zahid & KK are the stars of the album & give personality to this OST. If not the CD.. make sure you atleast buy the above two songs of Itunes.

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Paritosh Painter is a well known name in the comedy circuit. He is now making his directorial debut with Paying Guests with the massive production hand of Mukta Arts above him with the talented Mr. Subhash Ghai leading the way.

Subhash Ghai has not been very successful recently with his last 2 movies Yuvvraaj & Black & White being labelled as flops with poor scripts. But with a bunch of sexy girls like Neha Dhupia, Celina Jaitley, Riya Sen, Sayali Bhagat & Delnaz Paul there is not much of a script required anyway this time.. ;)  Plus the presence of actors like Javed Jaffery, Shreyas Talpade, Johnny Lever, Chunky Pandey & Ashish Chowdhry adds that extra comic zing to the movie. But the trailers still look very sleazy & ‘not so’ funny.

We’ll come to investigating the movie in due time after it hits the screens but for now lets find out if the work of music directors Sajid Wajid holds any potential. Their last couple of attempts were average doer’s like Kal Kissne Dekha & Dhoondte Reh Jaaoge and were nearly of the same young-comic genre. The lyrics of Paying Guests are by Jalees Sherwani, AK Upadhyay & Wajid.

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REVIEW

Track 1 - Jack & Jill - Shaan & Earl D’souza set the tone of the album right from the word go.. And that tone is total sleazy slapstick humour. lol. Sajid Wajid have produced a very interesting take on the kindergarten poetry with a funky groove to it & a romantic twist on the lyrics. It surely got fun in every element & Shaan’s vocals are spotless yet again. I don’t know if I hate or like this song.. It’s funny but irritating !!  The video sure is irritating with all actors dressed as school kids.. So overall irritating I say.. 5.5/10 .

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Track 2 - Paying Guests - The title song is almost an exact musical copy of Sajid Wajid’s previous work on tracks like Salma-o-salma & Nako-re-nako from Dhoondte Reh Jaaoge. The vocals of Wajid are of the exact same texture too. It seems Sajid Wajid are obsessed with the Mumbai Marathi beat structure as they use it on almost all of their soundtracks. The lyrics are irritating & cheap. Overall the song totally fails.. 4/10 .

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Track 3 - Ya Rabula Rabbi - The title sure sounds different & thus I was intrigued & waiting to listen to this. The song though .. does NOT sound very different! It’s catchy for sure but the music arrangement has traces of “Your my Love” from Partner which is Sajid Wajid’s work as well. So it seems these dudes are just going around in circles & re-creating their own work… My enthusiasm of hearing something new on this OST is dead by now !!

Sonu Nigam & Amrita Kak’s vocals are average. This probably will be the song with the maximum radio & TV airtime from this soundtrack as it has good lyrics & music formula that has worked well before. Plus it has the advantage of having all the hot couples in the video doing their thing.. Fairly decent track but lacks creativity except the title. 6.5/10.

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Track 4 - Nazar Se Nazaria - Sounds like a crude item number from the lyrics & Sunidhi Chauhan’s vocals. I wonder which of the hot leading ladies is in the video.. Well atleast we have something to look forward to cause this soundtrack is almost over with nothing more to offer. This song fails to keep you listening for long & makes no impression for you to come back to listen to it again. The vocals are average.. lyrics are prude & crude. The music is inspired yet again from a number of songs that I can spend the day listing. 4.5/10.

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Track 5 - Jack & Jill (Remix) - DJ A_Myth is back after a while to Bollywood remixes but with nothing super. I like the rap on this mix but the beat is not hard or attractive enough to be played in a main club dance set. This remix can find it’s way to night start up sets to empty dance floors but no where else. This remix does not make anything better for the average original. 5.5/10.

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Track 6 - Nazar Se Nazaria (Remix) - I fail to understand why they decide to put remixes on their soundtrack except ‘filling up the CD’ reason. This is a totally useless remix by A_Myth. It’s difficult to make out if he has even done anything to the original except add a light electro bass line. What a waste of 3 minutes 29 seconds !! 3.5/10.

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FINAL WORD

Below Average - 4.5/10.

Sajid Wajid are loosing touch. Their music is either inspired from others or from their own work. The music of every song on this OST is copied. The comic element in the songs is tending more towards sleazy rather than funny. The vocal performances are average by the best singers in the industry. The new Indian Idol participants can sing better than this.. The remixes are a total waste of time & CD space. Do you need more reason’s to avoid Paying Guests OST??

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Am a big fan of director Nagesh Kukunoor’s work; Iqbal, 3 Deewarein & Rockford being my favourites. Am thus really looking forward to this movie. The biggest advantage this movie has is the massive name of Akshay Kumar associated with it. Hence the expectation’s are high from the movie.. NOT the music.. !!

Except for 1 song in Iqbal & 1 in Rockford, there is nothing extra-ordinary in the music of Nagesh’s films. From the trailers on the tele so far, the of music of this film seems no different.

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8×10 Tasveer is a psychological thriller under the Percept Pictures Company Banner & is produced by Shailendra Singh. Starring along with Akshay are Ayesha Takia, Sharmila Tagore, Girish Karnad, Javed Jaffrey and others.

Although Salim-Sulaiman are the main music directors for this OST, they have help from singers Neeraj Shridhar & Bohemia doing the music of their own tracks. Lyrics are by Irfan Siddique for the main tracks, while Sameer & Bohemia pen one each.

Love the cover with that look Akshay has.. sure does catch your attention. The package inside seems to be the common structure these days with 5 main song & 5 remixes. Lets find out if this OST has the zing..

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REVIEW

Track 1 - Nazaara Hai - We got the exclusive of this song a week before it’s release and thus have been listening to it since then. It’s managed to grow on me.. but just a lil bit. The deep electronic bass at the start caught my attention quite instantly but dint really enjoy the acoustic drums on this composition. The structure is quite standard rock with no innovation. Vishal Dadlani’s vocals are good but not the best. Suraj Jagan could have possibly done a better job. The lyrics are good & describe Akshay’s tale. The guitar solo’s in the 2nd half are great & make it better song. It’s one of the better rock songs with the recent trend of rock flavour in Bollywood music. 7/10 .

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Track 2 - Haafiz Khuda - Mohit Chauhan does what he does best again. But I guess I have reached a point when I want to hear a new style from him. His recitation style is soulful and heart warming but just like his other numbers; eg. Masakali. The compositional arrangement is simple acoustic instrumentation & sounds like a modern sufi number. Quite like the lyrics on this song with a strong Urdu poetry influence. Tulsi Kumar’s vocals are good too. 7/10 .

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Track 3 - Aaja Maahi - Neeraj Shridhar sings this song in his true Bombay Viking’s style with English lyrics at the start. Lyrics by Sameer are so simple and smooth that you can instantly fall in love with this song. Plus Neeraj ad’s his special touch to it not just vocally but also musically. His composition reminds you Chandani Raatein by Partners in Rhyme, except for the rock interludes. The lounge feel of this song makes it perfect for a romantic night with your partner. Quite like it but it sounds familiar to things you have heard in the past. Tulsi Kumar makes this song special. 7/10 .

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Track 4 - I Got The Picture - Be it getting RDB to the music scene in India from UK or Bohemia from USA.. Akshay always does it in style. This is the second time Bohemia comes together with Akshay after CC2C on Chandni Chowk To China. That track was average. This one is below average.. It fits the theme of the movie.. but does not fit Bollywood. Bollywood can only go till a certain distance.. Experiments in music genres beyond that don’t work. This one is like listening to Eminem - The Way I Am. 5/10 - only for trying something new.

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Track 5 - Kuchh Is Tarah - It is exactly the same as Haafiz Khuda but only with simpler & more romantic lyrics. I like this version more than Track 2. Salim-Sulaiman save on their composition work while Irfan does the main work of reviving the lyrics. Mohit & Tulsi give the exact same rendition to these alternate lyrics like Track 2. 7.5/10 .

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Track 6 - Haafiz Khuda (Remix) - Yet another wasted remix by DJ Amyth. This track so does not need a remix !! Also this remix does nothing much for the song commercially either. It’s light slow mix that can only be used in lounge mix warm up sets. 4.5/10 .

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Track 7 - Nazaara Hai (Remix) - Much better this time. Sounds like DJ Amyth put some thought in this remix atleast and has done a decently good job in converting this rock song to a Electro dance mix. I can see myself & many other DJ’s using this mix in their sets. Not a commercial hit though. 6.5/10.

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Track 8 - Aaja Maahi (Remix) - Don’t quite like this remix. It completely changes the feel of the original song with a very common beat pattern that you must heard on a few million dance tracks world over. Amyth tries to give it a trance feel but fails and manages to ruin the song all together. 4/10 .

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Track 9 - I Got The Picture (Remix) - Bohemia decides to remix his song himself without handing over any any rights to Amyth. I guess he heard his other remixes on this OST.. and thus.. a wise decision I say.. ! He literally cuts the song into half by bringing the 5 plus minutes original down to 2:46. I do like his work on this as he gives his dark rap a Bhangra touch with a funky break beat pattern. Works… 6/10 .

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Track 10 - Kuchh Is Tarah (Remix) - Cross Track 5 with Track 6 [5x6] .. What do you get..? Answer is not 30.. it’s Track 10. And the score stays the same.. 4.5/10 .

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FINAL WORD

Average - 6/10.

The actual score should have been 5/10 but I am being generous as I like Kuchh Is Tarah & Nazaara Hai a little more than the recent OST releases. T-Series the record label mess it up by adding below average remixes to an otherwise decent OST. 8×10 Tasveer is not for the masses nor for the classes. Kuchh Is Tarah & Aaja Maahi are probably the only 2 tracks that will get decent radio airplay in the romantic shows. The music composition, vocal performances & lyrics lack originality and the extra punch to make this album stand out.

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