MUSIC REVIEW: Slumdog... Listening to this music is like watching a Nat Geo special on India
By Chandrima Pal . Buzz18 Jan 19, 2009 Comments [ 2 ] E-mail Almost 14 years ago Rahman gave us some unforgettable songs and tunes for Mani Ratnam's Bombay. It was a film by an Indian, for Indian audiences, and with an entirely Indian cast and crew. It depicted reality the way we thought we could handle it. It had plenty of song and dance, emotion, action and drama. Interestingly, Slumdog Millionaire is all of that, but with an internationally acclaimed Hollywood filmmaker at the helm, catering to a more international audience and with Rahman as the music composer, whose global experiences now reflect in his music. However, to begin with, we'd suggest you skip the very first track of the album Ringa Ringa. Unless you fancy Ila Arun and Alka Yagnik doing their take on the Choli Ke Peechhe kind of numbers. This is Rahman doing his best to recreate the cheesy Bollywood music of the 90's, which was replete with sexual overtones. This is not what you'd like to listen from the maestro, but guess he had a brief to stick to. CLICK HERE to listen to the Slumdog Millionaire soundtrack The familiar Rahman surfaces with Jai Ho. This soaring, rousing number has Hindi lyrics by Gulzar and there are some verses in Spanish too by Tanvi Shah. Sung by Sukhwinder Singh, Tanvi Shah and Vijay Prakash, Jai Ho is an elaborate song with a complex melody and some great orchestral parts. Tanvi Shah's singing is a good match for Sukhwinder's earthy Indian style. The timbre and range of Sukhwinder's voice is brought out perfectly in the way the song is laid out. Composed on a lavish scale, Jai Ho has anthemic qualities, something that Rahman has always been good at producing. O Saya is by M.I.A (an internationally acclaimed visual artist, singer, songwriter and producer, known for her strong political ideologies) and Rahman. Juxtaposed with drums that create the effect of a chugging locomotive, is Rahman's chanting. While the drums pick up tempo, sounds and effects merge and M.I.A. raps in English and Hindi. O Saya successfully conveys the sense of time flying past, of the rough and tumble of life. Riots is again an instrumental track, short, sharp and disturbing. True to its piturisation. On the other hand, Mausam and Escape is a pot pourrie of electronic and Indian Classical. Looped, pacey sitar parts are set against electronic beats, and if you like music that sounds BIG, this is it, as stupendous as you can get. Excellent job by Asad (sitar) and Sanjay Joseph (guitars). Kaboom! Liquid Dance explodes with bol scat combined with an orchestra with a touch of electronica. The instrumental parts have an Arabic touch, but the chanting and scatting is Indian as it gets. Liquid Dance is technically brilliant and kicks some serious but Latika's Theme reminds you about Rahman's skill with simple, barebones melodies. It is a haunting yet dreamy tune that sticks. The little sitar part at the end of the song gives it a sweet Indian touch, the melody evokes a range of emotions, even without any lyrics. Rahman goes loopy, layered and hypnotic again with Millionaire, an instrumental. One of the most well-produced tracks in the album is Gangsta Blues by Blaaze (remember RDB?). Rahman takes the best from hip hop and gangsta rap and give it his own wicked twist. The result is a lean, mean song that is promises to blast the hell out of your car stereos. Finally, Latika's sweet little theme tune is infused with English lyrics in Dreams on Fire. Not a bad song at all, though a bit too melodramatic in its words. Is Slumdog... Rahman's best-ever? That could be a matter of debate. But it certainly marks his turn as a mature, technically proficient music composer. Someone capable of churning out music that is expansive, rich and can easily scale up to the grandest and most challenging cinematic vision. The West may not think much of our filmmaking skills (read Amitabh's blog and some of the posts by British bloggers to get an idea), but it is easy to see why the western audience thinks so highly of Rahman's music. He gives them what they want. Grand, opulent scores, with a judicious use of western orchestral music, contemporary international sounds and a hint of Indian exotica. The Indian sound that is defined by the old-fashioned sitar, the bol scats and the strong melodies. Slumdog… is a great initiation to the genius of Rahman which is not always evident in the work he does for most Indian filmmakers. Verdict: Listening to the music of Slumdog Millionaire is like watching a Nat Geo special on India. It is familiar territory, yet the perspective and the packaging is what makes all the difference. http://buzz18.in.com/reviews/music/music-review-slumdog/110542/0
