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 After the disastrous Ta Ra Rum Pum from last year, YRF bring back their favourite pairing of Saif and Rani in another mainstream ‘family / kids / love’ themed movie called Thoda Pyar Thoda Magic (TPTM)…hmm, a little ‘magic’ is what YRF are desperate for after their spate of recent flops including their latest style-less Tashan!
As for the music they back the talents of Shankar Ehsaan Loy (SEL) this time round and who can blame them? The trio produced a decent soundtrack for YRF last year (Jhoom Barabar Jhoom) and more importantly for TPTM, their last production Taare Zameen Pe was a spectacular musical insight into the lives of children that eclipsed just about anything before it on the subject matter. But the question is can TPTM come anywhere close to the quality of TZP? Let’s be honest, it’s asking a lot from SEL so soon after a one off wonder like TZP but at least they can rely on the lyrics of Prasoon Joshi who did such a wonderful job in the same project with some fine poetry. More interestingly, can YRF finally get a decent soundtrack? Let’s see if there is any magic in the music…. There is no doubt that whilst showing some promise Pyar Ke Liye is a disappointment first up. It’s a happy go mantra full of metaphors about life’s curiosity with love and its impact. That’s all well and good but SEL have gone for the easy option in the execution here with what can only be described as a recycled set of arrangements! You won’t find any originality or attention to detail here, in fact the more you listen to it the more it sounds like a 90s track! Shankar Mahadevan’s singing and Prasoon’s lyrics pale in comparison to what they are capable of. Not bad overall but it should have been so much better! Let's hope Pyar Ke Liye is not a bad omen for the soundtrack… Where the previous track was just disappointing the next one, Nihaal Ho Gayi, is plain annoying especially the loud crooning of the chorus line “oh teri ek nazar se zindagi nihaal ho gayiâ€. What looks to be a peppy dance number soon turns into an average effort. Listen closely to the music and you will also notice reminisces of Ticket to Hollywood from last year’s JBJ. The overuse of the dhol confirms SEL’s recycling of their own songs! Shankar Mahadevan and Prasoon Joshi are totally unrecognisable here. As are SEL for that matter, where is the magic folks? The Remix is just peppier and louder and does not provide much of a variation from the original. If by chance you enjoyed that then you may want to listen to this. Thankfully Bulbula is an improvement of sort and will appeal to a very young audience especially on screen. It’s a happy go outing that helps build an understanding of Rani’s character in the movie called Geeta. The music is very simple, soft and pleasant but at least there is a catchy melody that kids can relate to….Sunidhi Chauhan’s low octave vocals are put to good use and Shankar Mahadevan provides support towards the end. This one will definitely sound better on screen but its appeal as an audio product is questionable (particularly to the wider audience).
Beetey Kal Se is an uplifting situational song about the past and future of India but in all honesty if you are still listening to the soundtrack until now you are doing very well indeed! SEL stick to their ‘old school formula’ (and continue to fail on its execution) but at least it sounds better than most of what preceded it. It will also sound better on screen as you get dialogues in between from the characters of the movie and consequently it’s more suited to the movie. Singing by Shreya Goshal and Sneha Suresh can’t be criticised as they deliver an honest performance. Lyrics serve the purpose of the song. The soundtrack ends on a high (relatively speaking!). One has to double check the CD cover to make sure the references to SEL are valid as this is one of the worst soundtracks to come from them! Accepting that the theme of the movie is not as serious as the one portrayed by TZP but the discerning lack of creativity, variety, sparkle and substance is apparent for everyone to see and hear. But then again, music fans appreciate that SEL are no longer a consistent bunch of composers (heck who is these days?). Having said that, this is definitely their worst in recent years and has a horrible ‘old school’ feel to it (note there is absolutely nothing wrong with ‘old school’ music IF it is executed in the proper manner). Maybe their attention is on the much anticipated Chandni Chawk to China which is due for release later this year. As for YRF, there’s no getting away from the worrying fact that they continue to produce flop soundtracks many of which prove to be a bad omen for their movies! Maybe they should give all their projects to the duo of Salim Sulaiman who have been their most impressive MDs in recent years. No-one else seems to be able to produce decent music for them. (Incidentally Salim Sulaiman have Rab De Bana Di Jodi, YRF’s most anticipated release of 2008). As far as music is concerned TPTM is virtually devoid of magic and is completely forgettable. SEL disappoint big time after TZP.
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Isn’t it ironic that a track called Lazy Lamhe turns out to be the best song of the album? You see one can argue that SEL have shown laziness throughout TPTM but at least they show some interest here and tap into their undoubted talents…The theme here is romance and SEL experiment with contemporary synth orchestration to deliver it and to their credit they do a decent job for once. Listen out for Loy’s piano piece which is the highlight. Anusha Mani provides some varied vocals that are excellent throughout but Prasoon’s lyrics were never expected to be the USP here. Overall SEL stand up for once and be counted in TPTM. The Remix is equally good with plenty of interesting additions, thankfully it’s not just a case of turning up the volume and making things faster…recommended.