DJ Munks.com

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Dharma, Sony and UTV Motion pictures come together for Mr. Karan Johar to do a remake of Stepmom!! Why why why..! Lol.. I am only kidding. I do understand that really good English movies don’t quite reach Indian villages and the people who don’t speak English, but then this movie is nearly worthless for the International Bollywood fans. Thus for the UK Bollywood fans all there is left to see in We Are Family are the performances of Kajol, Kareena and Arjun Ramphal with debutant director Siddharth Malhotra’s vision.

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“Ain’t no mountain high.. ain’t no valley low.. ain’t no river wide enough baby..

If you need me call me.. no matter where you are .. no matter how far.. no problem baby”

We don’t have Marvin Gaye in We Are Family but we certainly do have the best of Shankar Ehsaan Loy on the music with Irshad Kamil and Anvit Dutt writing the lyrics. What I am curious to find out if the OST of We are Family has any inspirations from the Stepmom OST as that truly is some soundtrack. Let us hit play and find out what this 10 track album has in store.. (last 4 songs are bonus songs so lets check out the first 6 for We are Family)

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Track 1 – Aankhon Mein Neendein – The song opens with what you would imagine coming out of the Aisha soundtrack with serious similarities until Rahat Fateh Ali Khan & Shreya Ghoshal’s soulful voices fill your ears. The arrangement of the song is catchy at the start but then goes into sounding like an average Bollywood song. Some good instruments used like the mouth organ solo. The overall music feel of the song is similar to the sounds of Kal Ho Na Ho and Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna and thus lacks true identity. The lyrics by Irshad Kamil are pretty complicated and not that you will pick up on your first listen except for the chorus.. and thus it will take a couple of listens to start liking this song. 7/10.

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Track 2 – Dil Khol Ke Let’s Rock – Elvis would probably kill himself if he listens to this. Sure it is not bad for Bollywood but this song is suicide in the international markets. Totally inspired by Jailhouse Rock and written by Anvita Dutt is what is playing the most of TV these days.. but I am still to develop a liking for this song. The Dholki twist in the bridge of the song is pretty cool but overall the song fails to impress musically and lyrically. Even the vocal performances by Akriti Kakkar, Anushka Manchanda & Suraj Jagan are purely average. 5/10.

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Track 3 – Reham O Karam – This song comes as a surprise after an average and a nearly average song. Pure Shankar Mahadevan vocals can blow anyone away. They are just perfect and can swing your mood and calm your nerves within a minute of listening. This is what you call God gifted talent!! Vishal Dadlani has been singing a number of really good songs and seems to be promoting himself as a singer now and not just a music director.. he is singing for his competition music directors now! Good for him.. and for us since this song is something else. They lyrics by Irshad are very good but not catchy again. The music is nearly not there and is not required as Shankar fills up all the airwaves but when there is then it is with the rock theme with some exciting orchestration and electric guitars. Must & totally recommended listen. 8/10.

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Track 4 – Hamesha & Forever – Sonu starts off this song with some good piano work and harmonic chorus. The mastering could be off in this song as the music seems to sound louder than his vocals. So technically not the best. Again with the lyrics.. the beauty of words comes across through long phrases rather than rhyming words and thus misses the real click that usually works with the audiences. It’s a decently good song overall but I won’t recommend it. SEL (Shankar Eshaan Loy) seem to be loosing it with what really works with their listeners. 6/10.

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Track 5 – Sun Le Dua Yeh Aasman – Bela Shende is a name that has come up after a long time after Jodhaa Akhbar & Paheli. She does another acoustic song to piano which actually sounds really good as far as the music arrangement and her vocals are concerned. The lyrics for a change do work! The sad feel of the song is very situational and I guess works in the background in the movie when she about to die. 7/10.

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Track 6 – We Are Family Theme – Well now we know why there is excessive use of piano throughout all the songs in this movie since it is part of the theme. This is where SEL excel.. in creating good theme musics for situational movies. They never fail to impress in this category and this could well win them an award in the music department.. Musically this song is that good.. Check it out. 8/10.

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Track 7 – Noor E Khuda – Bonus Track from the movie ‘My Name is Khan‘.

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Track 8 – Aaj Kal Zindagi – Bonus Track from the movie ‘Wake Up Sid‘.

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Track 9 – Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehan – Bonus Track from the movie ‘Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna‘.

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Track 10 – Kal Ho Naa Ho – Bonus Track from the movie ‘Kal Ho Naa Ho‘.

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FINAL WORD

Above Average – 6.5/10

Just a little above average for this OST because of the disappointment that it brought along.. With names like SEL, Irshad Kamil & Karan Johar I was expecting this to be something new that would thrill. But every song is almost predictable with SEL deciding to play safe all across the OST with nothing new in the CD players. No big track to hit the dance floors and all they could come up with was a copy of Jailhouse Rock. The lyrics are good but they don’t click. The vocals are good but fail to totally impress except really good vocals in Reham O Karam and Sun Le Dua Yeh Aasman. hus I won’t recommend you buying this OST but surely get the above two songs. Music on Sony Music.

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Am writing a music review after a long time.. I hope I haven’t lost touch with my music. And I hope exactly the same for Vishal-Shekhar who are making music after a long time. Frankly I feel fit and up-to-date.. One can’t really loose touch of music flavour & understanding can they! I guess it is the same for Vishal-Shekhar too. They are good at what they do & I feel they can never loose that! After Dostana in 2008 they only worked on Aladin last year. This year they are back with I HATE LUV STORYS (== IHLS).

Cliche line..?? I hope the music is not cliche for this exciting forthcoming project which is a Karan & Hiroo Johar & Ronnie Screwvala production under the UTV banner. Starring Imran Khan & cutie Sonam Kapoor who are back after flops LUCK and Delhi-6. IHLS is the brain child of debutant director Punit Malhotra who has also written the story. Karan Johar loves working with new directors I guess.. Well can’t object to that since they usually give him hits like Dostana recently. Another common factor to these projects is the hit music of Vishal-Shekhar. These guys make some of the biggest club tunes like Desi Girl, Bachna Ae Haseeno & Om Shanti Om.

So lets hope IHLS delivers something new for me to play in the parties which is fresh, young and with a killer beat just like the film trailer. Check it out.. It is about a guy who works in the film industry & doesn’t believe in love but then has to work on a romantic film with a girl who is crazy about love.

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REVIEW

Track 1 – Jab Mila Tu – This song reminds you of exactly the same album opening to Dostana with Jaane Kyu. A soft romantic beauty this song is.. I love it’s vibe with the classic double bass rhythm and some sharp acoustic guitar at the start followed by dirty electric guitar in the para’s. Anvita Dutt is a hugely talented writer & her lyrics on this song are truly mesmerising. Vishal lends his vocals to his compilation himself & the texture of his voice fits in brilliantly. You will be humming & singing along this tune in a matter of a few minutes. A perfect Sunday morning radio tune – 8/10.

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Track 2 – Bin Tere – So what if Vishal can’t sing every song on the album.. he is hugely talented and can write lyrics equally well. Even if it is for a phenomenal ex-Pakistani band Fuson singer Shafqat Amanat Ali, Vishal can give the lyrics lot of substance & depth. Respect to him.. Shafqat gives his soul in the form of his voice to this song which moves to a rather fast upbeat for a sad romantic song like this. Listen to the guitar on this number. Some really good solo’s with a wholesome band instrumental compilation. Sunidhi Chauhan makes an appearance & does a harmony with Shafqat in the last 2 minutes. Like this one.. but definitely not the best I’ve heard. 7/10.

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Track 3 – I Hate Luv Storys – This funky title song is a modern equivalent of Shut up and bounce from Dostana.. only a lot cooler!!! This is the tune I’ll be blasting in clubs and parties. In the voice of Vishal Dadlani again with the lyrics of Kumaar, this song has a catchy hit chorus line with part Hindi part English lyrics. It is fresh, cool, funky, hummable, dancy and very capable of lighting the dance floor on fire if mixed right by the DJ’s around the world. It is not a massive tune like Desi Girl or Bachna Ae Haseeno or Deewangi Deewangi.. but it has it’s own style & it works. Sure hit – 7.5/10.

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Track 4 – Bahara – A start with the classical Rajasthani voice of Sona Mohapatra is always a good style. It works with the listeners as proved by Genda Phool last year. Shreya Ghosal’s melodic voice literally makes you feel like Spring as she talks about the thrill of her first love with the lyrics of Kumaar. A good romantic song with a very good unique composition. Could have done with more classical instrumentation.. But it is alright. You will still like it. 7/10.

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Track 5 – Sadka – Another song with strikingly good lyrics by Anvita Dutt. 3 Idiots singer – Suraj Jagan gives it a very deep vocal touch. He sounds ambient & very powerful for a song with lyrics talking about worship of love. Mahalaxmi Iyer does well too on the female vocals.. but not outstanding. Suraj steals leads the song all the way. The production & composition sounds similar to the others with the typical Vishal-Shekhar deep bass guitar. Good song. 7/10.

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Track 6 – Bin Tere-Reprise – This version completely surprises you with how good it is. Vishal lets his partner Shekhar take on the mic this time & also lets Kumaar improvise on his original lyrics. A big sacrifice !! and it truly pays off. The acoustic guitar is brilliant.. soulful & melodious. The lyrics are truly beautiful and make you fall in love. A valentines day classic to be or a perfect background song for your wedding reception. Love it.. 8.5/10.

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Track 7 – Bahara (Chill Version) – One of my favourite singers Rahat Fateh Ali Khan comes down to make a good song even better. His voice alone gives so much more depth to Kumaar’s lyrics that you just won’t believe how the same song so different.. even when it is not a remix !! The chill version is a true lounge mix and relaxes your nerves. Close your eyes and listen to truly enjoy the bliss of the classical recitation by Rahat. A must listen. 8/10.

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Track 8 – Bin Tere-Remix - DJ Kiran steps in to try and make a great song dancy.. Succeeds at that.. but truly ruins the feel of this soulful number. The trance feel fits in but not well enough to make you like this version. You can stop listening to this album after Track 7. I would hate to find any DJ’s out there playing this anywhere.. Ignore this one. 5/10.

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FINAL WORD

Super Good & Fresh – 7.5/10

Forget loosing touch.. Vishal-Shekhar have only got better. This album might not prove to be very big hit like some of their previous work but it sure has a different essence that they can boast of. It is an all rounder filling in all the gaps in the current market for different genres. It works in every respect to deliver a good package with a lot of love in it.. Ironic for a title that hates love !!

Buy this album if you are a music lover. Or even if you just love your partner then buy this album to impress them with your romantic listening taste.. You will feel the magic ! Available on Sony Music.

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UK PREMIERE ON THRUSDAY 29th JAN ’09. WORLDWIDE MOVIE RELEASE ON FRIDAY 30th JAN ’09.

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I saw the trailer of Luck By Chance at the Ghajini Premiere in London and I instantly built up really high hopes from this movie. The colourful clips, the texture of the shots, the cast, the music.. it all seemed so well put-together in that one minute trailer… And guess what.. LBC does not let you down !!

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The members of the Akhtar family are known for their talent and effortless brilliance in the Indian film industry. Zoya Akhtar joins the family trade in style !! She has the eye for attention to detail, the sanity for a good story, the elegance for a good script and the touch to sparkle every shot. At the same time she has the class that  every Akhtar has including Shabana Azmi.

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PLOT

This Bollywood movie is about “Bollywood“. Its different from the others made in this genre in story style where it gives you an insight into every character and their little life story.

The movie is mainly about 2 aspiring actors played by Konkana Sen and Farhan Akhtar who want to get somewhere in this hugely notorious industry. Farhan Akhtar falls in love with Konkana during his struggling days. He gets lucky and then plays a little crooked to get the lead role in a movie being produced by a huge Producer [Rishi Kapoor] & his wife [Juhi Chawla] launching his brother as a Director [Sanjay Kapoor] with a new female lead [Isha Shervani] who is the daughter of a famous old Bollywood queen [Dimple Kapadia] which happens when the Superstar [Hritik Roshan] drops out of the movie to do another Karan Johar film.

His life and personal commitments change to favor his career. He leaves Konkana & his friends behind in a circle of lies till reality hits him and he decides to come back to the people who loved him when he was nothing.. only to find they have moved on and left him alone to his stardom.

Let me clarify.. the story is NOT about Farhan Akhtar.. It’s about Konkana Sen.. Surprised..?? Its true.. I hate ruining stories so I will leave the details for you to discover when you watch this movie..

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REVIEW

LBC is a very light, fun, colourful, charming, artistic and aspiring movie with great music. Nothing too brilliant about the story if you notice… It has traces of many movies made to the tune of the Bollywood industry and aspirations + hardships of aspiring actors who will to succeed at any cost in this big intoxicating industry. But what is brilliant about LBC is how simple & light this movie is !! It has no action, few intense emotional scenes and full of light humour making it a great family movie. It shows the different aspects of movies and different characters associated with the industry. It brings out the stereotypes with simple character driven jokes about them that will keep you giggling throughout the movie. The full cast of the movie does a commendable job as fas as projecting their character is concerned but none of them out-stand and share the limelight from the other great actors in the movie. Everyone is equally good.

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HIGHLIGHTS OF THE MOVIE

- Special guest appearances by the best in the industry. The movie starts with Aamir Khan !! Other names include Sharukh Khan, Kareen Kapoor, Rani Mukherjee, Javed Akhtar, Shabana Azmi, Abhishek Bachchan, John Abraham, Ranbir Kapoor, Akshaye Khanna, Vivek Oberoi, Manish Malhotra.. did I miss anyone..??

- Farhan Akhtar & Konkana get along brilliantly as the leads with style and quality acting.

- Rishi Kapoor & Juhi Chawla are hilarious. So is Sanjay Kapoor.

- Dimple Kapadia is intense, strong and charming even now..

- Isha Sharvani is cute and fits the bill well. Hritik is sublime and still very noticeable in his short role.

- The art work and cinematography are colourful and very pleasing.

- Music is the best with Shankar-Eshaan-Loy doing their magic. Even the background score & Sound design are great.

- Zoya has done a great job for her directorial debut and sure can write a good story. Farhan can write some mean dialogues too.

- The twist at the end in the story is totally unexpected and well thought. Also, no character or element of the movie feels out of place. Every thing in the movie fits well with each other like a complete jigsaw.

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LOW-LIGHTS OF THE MOVIE

- Some scenes of the movie seem a little stretched. You do notice 2 hours 40 minutes passing by.

- It is a slow movie, no doubt, and thus will let your attention go off the screen every now and then.

- A few strong emotions and challenging scenes could have made this movie more appealing.

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FINAL WORD

Very Good – 7.5/10 .

Its the second big release of 2009 after a disastrous Chandni Chowk to China and it is a HIT for sure. How big a hit is what we have to wait and watch. Must Watch..

Keep it for a relaxed evening after a quite dinner for light-feel-good entertainment. It doesn’t promise laugh riots but sure will make you giggle and smile every few minutes.. Kudos to the cast and crew.. !! It’s not Luck .. just plain Talent !

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I sooo love the start of this album that it’s difficult to move on….

Let’s start this review again.. [while I play the CD again from the start ]

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Simple fundamental… When Shankar-Eshaan-Loy [SEL] come together with Javed & Farhan Akhtar, history knows that the music is always ground breaking. Be it Dil Chahta Hai or Lakshya or Don or Rock On !! the result has always been pure harmonic melody in an innovative style. This time they had another Akhtar join their fabulous team. Farhan’s sister Zoya makes her debut as a Writer & Director thus making it a complete family movie for the Akhtar’s. The class & grace of this family is evident in the music of this movie and I am sure will very clearly be seen even in the movie when it releases..

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The film is about the struggle of an aspiring actor played by Farhan in his second movie as an actor along with some big names like Konkana Sen, Rishi Kapoor, Dimple Kapadia, Juhi Chawla, Sanjay Kapoor & Hritik Roshan. Here is a spoiler :- We hear there are special appearances by Shahrukh Khan, Aamir Khan, Salmaan Khan, Kareena Kapoor, Shilpa Shetty, Rani Mukherji, Karan Johar & many more to name a few !!

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Lets come to the music. As the movie is about struggle, love, relationships, fun & pain the music is about that as well. All these fundamentals work with a listener as everyone can relate to them in some way or the other. Javed Akhtar’s lyrics always deliver the message in the most soothing & perfect way.. and music of Luck By Chance is no different.

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REVIEW

Track 1- Yeh Zindagi Bhi – Its got a very groovy drum break beat start. Very catch & you will want to listen to it again & again just for that start. But wait for Shekhar Ravjiani & Loy’s vocals to come in cause they are equally brilliant with some amazing poetic lyrics typical to the Javed Akhtar style about life & a man’s aspirations. The chorus & bridge of the song are very catch & will get stuck in your head. You will be humming the harmonies for a couple of days atleast. Make sure you stop & listen to the lyrics once atleast as they are deep & meaningful. The repetitive background drum beat music works in favor of the song & thus I don’t see any downside in this song although you can hear a slight similarity to the ‘Taare Zameen Par’ soundtrack. I give this song a 9/10 .

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Track 2 – Baawre – After I finally managed to get past the continuous looping of track 1, the expectations were very high for the rest of the album. “Baawre” doesn’t disappoint you. The Rajasthani ensemble along with Shankar’s vocals is a classic blend of traditional with modern Bollywood music. Although the overall feel is traditional, the song has a very situational feel to it and you wonder what it will look like in the movie. What this album misses is a club tune. This song has the potential to fill that gap depending on how it is shot. Hritik Roshan dancing to the song in a Russian circus environment should do the song good. It will still not become a “Koi Kahe” as it lacks that class. The instruments, the composition, the lyrics, the mixing on this song is very good. I just don’t like the drop that comes in around 3 minutes into the song. This song gets a 8/10 .

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Track 3 – Pyaar Ki Daastaan – You have had a song about life, a fun dance number & now a romantic one. When you get to song 3 you know this album is a complete package with all moods.

Amit Paul delivers some very soulful vocals along with Mahalakshmi Iyer on this song. Lyrics are deep & very romantic with a strong Bollywood flavour to it. The composition is not very different from many other Bollywood romantic songs. Plus it is not very catchy but definitely a good listen. An average song. I would give it a 6.5/10 .

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Track 4 – Yeh Aaj Kya Ho Gaya? – A simple straight forward song sung by the melodious yet powerful Sunidhi Chauhan. A happy feel good factor with a complete live music ensemble. I can imagine the SEL boys performing this song live on stage. Live drums, keyboards & guitars… Minimal synthetic music.  Takes you back to Rock On !!. Great composition and has a light side to it. I like this song. I give it a 7.5/10 .

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Track 5 – Sapno Se Bhare Naina – If you liked track 1 on this album, you will LOVVVVEEEEE this one. This is by far the best song on this CD. You have to listen to this song atleast 5 times to grab all elements of this song viz. Lyrics, Vocals, composition, instruments used and the overall package of each element blending with other. Each element is so grasping that it takes full 5 minutes of the song to relish it. Pay attention to the lyrics from the word go & you wont get enough of it. The aspirations & dreams are picturesque through words alone. The music of this song also forms the background score of the film’s intense moments. It has a dark bassline for it’s start and then goes into a soft Drum n’ Bass beat pattern. Shankar’s voice makes you feel like you are walking on sky. It surely is the best overall work of SEL I have ever heard. I give it a 9.5/10 . Brilliant !!

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Track 6 – O Rahi Re – Another superb soft song. Shankar’s vocals on this song literally touch your soul. This song without any music & just his vocals is good enough to take you on a trip with the amazing lyrics at hand. I think SEL realised that & thus have kept the music to a minimal with an acoustic guitar & a simple beat. Its completely in the style of “Maa” from Taare Zameen Par. I would love to see Shankar perform this live on stage someday. 9/10 .

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Track 7 – Baawre Remix – If you want to do something different from the current trend… THIS IS HOW YOU DO IT !! With the Remixes trend in the market, the team of LBC haven’t kept remixes off nor have they gone the typical way of giving a song to DJ Suketu or A-Myth and the likes…

Midival Punditz are regarded to be the kings of Asian Underground and they make a come back here with a direct entry into Bollywood with this amazing rendition of Baawre. Truly electronic with vocal scatting being the main feature. The production of this remix is simply innovative & new to a style unknown to Bollywood. A rocking 8/10 for this remix.

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FINAL WORD

BRILLIANT – 8.5/10

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Shankar-Eshaan-Loy along with the Akhtar family make a statement and put a milestone at the start of 2009. It is sort of a like a challenge for all music teams to try and out do them. And frankly… I doubt anyone can come close !! You might have bigger hit songs in the forthcoming year but not an album packed with hits like this… Cant wait for this movie !!

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