Oscar, is not far!

I was telling almost everyone that I am not going to write on A.R.Rahman’s new feat of getting Golden Globe as almost every tom, dick and harry has discussed about it. But then, I felt, if I don’t write few words praising Rahman here, its meaningless being an ardent Rahman fan and having a blog.

The ‘Mozart of Madras’ as they fondly call, Rahman has made all of us even more proud yesterday. Something that Indian cinema industry has been struggling to do since its inception 60+ years ago. Three Oscar nominations for an Indian and most probable chances of grabbing one…man, I must say I felt elated when I heard about this (I was sure of a nomination, but never expected three)…though many of his compositions in Hindi and Tamil movies are still better than Slumdog Millionaire, it takes an English movie to bring fame to a technician even if he is not English (wish, this changes over time)…

Indian cinema, to be specific, Tamil cinema has seen many talented music directors. There was never a dearth for good music. But, there are only few who have redefined the way music is composed. You can count them easily. In my humble opinion, A.R.Rahman should top the list. Though I am an ardent fan of Ilayaraja also, (in fact I listen to way old songs of 60s and still enjoy them) A.R.Rahman has set a new trend when everyone else was doing the same. Roja – the songs are still fresh and got a place within Top 10 compositions of 100 best soundtracks of the world by Time magazine. Almost every single album of Rahman had something unique in it, which is still true after 18 years since he started his career. That is why, Rahman is often being compared with Sachin Tendulkar. He is a ‘trend setter’ and ‘trend changer’.

Boys, Taxi Taxi, Behka Behka, Masakkali – he is still setting new trends which even younger music directors are afraid to try. He is a living legend and man of humility. Of course, big shots never boast. I can keep writing about A.R.Rahman for several pages…but, all I wanted to say is ‘I pray God to get A.R.Rahman the must deserving Oscar and bring glory to India and wish you do the same’…as a tribute to Rahman, watch and enjoy some of his jingles here (the ones he composed before he got popularity in film music)…

JAI HO!

Sakkarakatti – Not so Rahmantic…

If you are an ardent Rahman fan like me, you must have listened to ‘Sakkarakatti’ songs by this time. Usually, any Rahman composition takes its own time to make an impact and grow on you. Thats why I have been listening to the songs many times for the past 3 days before writing my review…after listening to the album many times, I feel deserted with the output. The album is neither mediocre nor excellent…it is GOOD if I have to say in one word…but definitely not upto Rahman’s standards…

1) Taxi Taxi – A ‘Fresh’, rappy number…typical Rahman’s style…this song really grows on you over time…excellent mix of instruments…lyrics could have been better, but way far better than other songs…
Taxi Taxi

2) I Miss You da – a melody with the strong voice of Chinmayee…definetely not one of the best of Rahman’s melodies…not really impressive…
I Miss You Da

3) Chinnammaa – a rehash of Rahman’s old song from Meenaxi…a fast, folk number with commendable lyrics from Pa.Vijay…the flute interludes are mellifluous…
Chinnammaa

4) Elay – an attempt to give a youthful number, not really succeeded…initial few seconds resemble Yeh Saala from RDB and the comparison ends there…rest of the song is quite mediocre…
Elay

5) Marudhaani – excellent rendition…perfect blend of beats with a sweet tune…MadhuSree’s voice is pleasant to the ears…at instances, Vaali’s lyrics make you feel like listening to a song from a dubbed movie..otherwise, oustanding composition…
Marudhaani

6) Naan Eppodhu – Reena Bharadwaj’s voice is pleasant but pronunciation is awful…not an unusual song to keep in your playlist…just passable, thats it…
Naan Epoudhu

Out of 6 songs, 3 are Rahmantic and rest are just antic…out of the 3 good ones, 2 are rehash of his old Hindi songs…is Rahman really running out of options or is it the director’s failure to extract the best from Rahman? When Mani ratnam, Shankar and most of the Hindi directors get the BEST from Rahman, most other Tamil directors miserably failed lately…moreover, his concentration is centered in Bollywood where almost all his albums are doing brisk business…at least for the longing Tamil fans like me, Rahman should present his magic in Tamil once again…

Dharan – A prodigy

I write blogs in English. All my official communications are in English. Even if my colleagues are Tamilians, I prefer communicating with them in English. But when it comes to songs, I listen only to Tamil songs. I still couldn’t find a reason for this, but so far I never listened to songs of any other language including English and sincerely do not know whether I will do in future.

Let’s come to the topic. Recently, a young chap is going great guns with his music composition in Tamil film industry. He has scored music only for two films but with the quality of music that he has produced, one can easily gauge his caliber. Though the movies have not been received well by the populace, the music has been welcomed with wide arms. I am talking about Dharan, a teenager who is doing wonders with his compositions. At the very first instance, I started noticing some difference in his music and started liking them.

Here’s a great song from his debut movie Paarijatham.

This song has been quite a revolution. At one point of time almost all the youth in Tamilnadu were kind of entranced by this song. If that was a perfect example of how one should start his career in music, he proved that he is no fluke with his second movie ‘Sivi’. After A.R.Rehman’s Tamil Rap in Kaadhalan, this is one of the best raps that you can get in Tamil. When almost every music director is giving run-of-the-mill rap songs, this one proves to be different. Unlike other raps, here the music doesn’t overshadow the lyrics and thats the best part of it. I listen to this song at least once a day.(Linking the audio alone as the video is terribly horrible)
Sivi Oh Nenje Remix

These are only the masterpieces and almost all the songs from these two movies are excellent. With only 2 movies to his credit, he has proved to have immense potential with the difference he has shown. With lot of talented youngsters entering into Film industry, it really augurs well for Kollywood, isn’t it?