Take Note: From KK to Illaiyaraaja in Modern Love and Vadivelu

It’s hard to name a track sung by KK that was same-sounding or lacking. He brought to singing an admirable ease and remarkable depth at the same time. KK also chose well, adding to his body of work with an acute awareness perhaps of the kind of music that he wanted to be remembered by. “Baby Tujhe Paap Lagega” from the upcoming Zara Hatke Zara Bachke is definitely a track that he would not have taken on and if he had decided to lend his name to it, he would have made sure that it didn’t sound like “Gandi Baat” from the soundtrack of R Rajkumar (2013). Himesh Reshammiya who has sung “Baby Tujhe Paap Lagega,” sounds like he is unwilling to give his Aashiq Banaya Aapne (2005) days a rest. Incidentally, KK did the playback for “Dilnashin Dilnashin” on the soundtrack of Aashiq Banaya Aapne, which was composed by Reshammiya. And despite Reshammiya’s cacophonous trilling, KK brought an incomparable richness to the track. 

Fortunately, Reshammiya features only as a vocalist Zara Hatke Zara Bachke, which has been composed by Sachin-Jigar. The film album has another big name in Arijit Singh on its credits on the track “Phir Aur Kya Chahiye.” Except the track sounds like a mish mash of Pritam’s biggest hits. While most of the album is definitely ignorable, upcoming vocalist Varun Jain along with the Faridi brothers salvage the soundtrack with “Tere Vaaste,” which falls into the category of a full-blown pop ballad with a side of qawwali a la “Tumse Milke Dil Ka” (from Main Hoon Na, 2004). 

Among music that might surprise listeners this month is the score of Sirf Ek Bandaa Kaafi Hai, which includes the fiery rap-driven “Bandaa” sung by Vivek Hariharan and Mumbai rapper Enkore and the uplifting “Bandeya” led by Sonu Nigam. The soundtrack features multiple composers, including Roy and Sangeet Haldipur, bringing in different sensibilities that work in the film’s favour. 

What would undeniably surprise, if not shock South Indian audiences, is a track rendered by the comic superstar, Vadivelu, on an AR Rahman soundtrack no less. For over a decade now, Vadivelu has been roped in to showcase his vocal chops in the form of rap or spoken word – funny punchlines really – which were an extension of his on-screen character. But on the blistering folk-based track “Raasa Kannu,” composed by Rahman for the political thriller, Maamannan, Vadivelu sounds like he could fool veteran Tamil folk singers into believing that he is part of their troupe. 

Also on our Tamil playlist this month is the soundtrack of Modern Love (Chennai), the highpoint of which is composer Illaiyaraaja. While some of the episodes including Paravai Kootil Vazhum Maangal, directed by Bharatiraja, play snatches of Illaiyaraaja classics in the background, the soundtrack has impressive originals. There’s the jazzy “Aanaal,” with a distinctly 1960s’ vibe, superbly delivered by Ananya Bhat, who has also sung a new Illaiyaraaja favourite “Onnoda Nadandha” from the film Viduthalai Part 1 (2023). “Thendral” is another track that recalls some of the best work done by the music director through the 1980s. In fact, I can hear a seamless lo-fi mash-up of “Thendral” and “Valaiosai Kala Kala” from the Kamal Haasan-Amala starrer Sathya (1988).  Other film music directors including Yuvanshankar Raja, GV Prakash and Sean Roldan have contributed to the soundtrack. Of the lot, Roldan’s tracks stand out, especially the duet titled “Uravu”. Sung by Roldan and Padmapriya Raghavan, “Uravu’s” lush melodic lines evoke a sense of nostalgia and definitely seem to be drawing from Ilaiyaraaja’s glory days. And if you can imagine a remix of “Haanikaarak Bapu” from Dangal (2016) and “Leke Pehla Pehla Pyaar” from CID (1956), you might land on the sound of “Kukkunu.” Composed by Prakash with Remya Nambeesan and Vagu Mazan on vocals, “Kukkunu” is a playful, thoroughly enjoyable track that sticks with you. 

The soundtrack of Kushi, the hyped-up Samantha Prabhu-Vijay Deverakonda starrer, marks the Telugu music debut of music director Hesham Abdul Wahab. Wahab, who has established himself in the Malayalam film industry composing for films like the Parvathy Thiruvothu starrer Varthamanam (2019) and Madhuram (2021) featuring Joju George, is also a fine vocalist. Proof of this fact can be heard in “Na Roja Nuvve,” the first track and only track so far to be released from Kushi. The highlight of the song for me is the sarangi, an instrument that is so rarely heard in commercial film music. 

Some would argue mainstream cinema could use less of plots drawn from Indian mythology, but let us brace ourselves for Adipurush, a multi-lingual release that promises to be a sensory … experience. The saving grace is that composers Ajay-Atul seldom disappoint. I’m sure the soundtrack will have a few memorable songs even though its first release, “Jai Shri Ram” minus the lyrics sounds like it belongs on the opening credit score for a Star Wars film.