Producer: Ritesh Sidhwani Director: Farhan Akhtar Starring: Amitabh Bachchan, Hrithik Roshan, Preity Zinta, Sharad Kapoor, Sushant Singh, Raj Zutshi, and Om Puri. Music: Shankar Ehsaan Loy Lyrics: Javed Akhtar Singers: Shankar Mahadevan, Udit Narayan, Alka Yagnik, Sadhna Sargam, Shaan, Hariharan, Sonu Nigam, Roop Kumar Rathod, Kunal Ganjawala and Vijay Prakash. Audio On: Sony Music Number of Songs: 8 Released on: April 22, 2004

Reviewed by: Aniket Joshi Reviewer's Rating: 9 out of 10 Enter your Rating: 1 out of 10 2 out of 10 3 out of 10 4 out of 10 5 out of 10 6 out of 10 7 out of 10 8 out of 10 9 out of 10 10 out of 10

The makers of Dil Chahta Hai return with their next offering, Lakshya. Directed by Farhan Akhtar and starring the hit pair of Hrithik Roshan and Preity Zinta from last yearīs smash hit Koi Mil Gaya, Lakshya has a lot of things going for it. Add to that the presence of Mr. Amitabh Bachchan and a great soundtrack and Ritesh Sidhwani and Farhan Akhtar are again looking at a successful film, both critically and commercially, just like DCH. The music of Lakshya is probably one of the best to come out of Bollywood this year. A big reason for the soundtrack being so creatively rich is the vision of the director-lyricist-music director team. The music of Dil Chahta Hai was very well in context with the script/mood of the film (and still entertaining) and the same seems to be the case with Lakshya.

The album opens with Main Aisa Kyon Hoon sung by Shaan. The lazy hip-hop feel and interesting lyrics make it a winner. This one will definitely stick around the top ten charts for a long time to come. Shaan does a great job of getting into the mood of the song.

Agar Main Kahoon is in the same vein as Jaane Kyon from DCH since the lyrics here are also conversational. The singers, Udit Narayan and Alka Yagnik breeze through this song. Shankar Ehsaan Loy keep the arrangements simple and that goes in favor of the song. The guitar is very infectious and one of the reasons for the song turning out to be a winner.

Kitni Baatein is a gem lyrically. This song about separation has very simple yet heart-touching words which couldīve only been penned by a lyricist of the stature of Mr. Javed Akhtar. Hariharan and Sadhna Sargamīs renditions are also praiseworthy as one can feel the pain and somberness in their voices. The song is repeated again in a slightly shorter version.

Lakshya couldīve only been sung so energetically by Shankar Mahadevan. This is his territory and he makes the song a winner. The inspirational lyrics by Javed Akhtar give a lot of mileage to the song. The composition is simple and the orchestration is very nicely put together.

Javed Akhtar has written quite a few songs for war movies (e.g. Border, LOC - Kargil,) so itīs not surprising to see him come up with another winner in Kandhon Se Milte Hain Kandhe. Sung by Shankar Mahadevan, Sonu Nigam, Hariharan, Roop Kumar Rathod, Kunal Ganjawala and Vijay Prakash, the song is about the camaraderie of soldiers during a war. Shankar Ehsaan Loy come up with a catchy number here and this should be a highlight to watch on-screen.

Two instrumentals, Separation and Victory, sum up the album. Both might not make for repeat listening on the CD, however, they will enhance the situations significantly on-screen.

Sadly in todayīs world of Hindi films, songs are not conceived and picturised as they should be. Dil Chahta Hai was a rare movie which not only had a great album, however most importantly, each and every song fitted into the film. Not one song was out of place. It seems Farhan Akhtar has again put in a lot of effort on selecting music for his film, and the results are just as good as Dil Chahta Hai. Shankar Ehsaan Loy have come up with one of their better efforts and letīs hope Farhan Akhtar has complimented their efforts by making a great film.