KIKK Music Review - S-E-L Scores A Telugu Point

After Vishal-Shekhar, it's Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy composing for a Telugu movie. They don't unleash their full potential here, but it's still an enjoyable album. The compilation includes every variety of song that's popular nowadays. This Siddharth and Tamanna starrer has already scored music-wise with at least three out of the eight songs that you'll hum long after the music's off. How much more popular it gets depends a whole lot on the movie's performance at the box-office. Heard individually, it's nice-not blockbusterish, just nice and decent stuff.

Egire Egire The start of the album is a youthful peppy number with a cozy foursome at the playback-Clinton Cerejo, Hemachandra, Raman Mahadevan and Shilpa Rao. Chandrabose's lyrics are all about freedom as the title suggests and all that things that signify youth-dreams, independence et al. It's a very energetic song and the playback choices work out pretty well together. The electric guitar stands out in this classic mood song. ***.75

Aanandama A beautiful soft duet rendered by Shreya Ghoshal and Shankar Mahadevan, Aanandama.. has lyrics penned by Seetarama Sastry. The instrumental is lovely as is Ghoshal's vocals and the way the tune mellows down further when she chips in. The santoor in the song is the highlight along with the way the energy level goes from shade to shade seamlessly. So far, so good. ***1/2

Abacha Shilpa Rao and Mahalaxmi Iyer sing this Item-ish number; two girls singing about/for a guy. Erm, definitely heard this before with a few changes. Should make it to the top 100 list of this category. **.75

Konchem Ishtam This is a total fun title track, with Seetarama Sastry's upbeat lyrics and matching happy music. Along with Egire, this is the Pick of the Album. This is super catchy and you find yourself tapping your feet along with the fun beats.The instrumental, the tone of the vocals and the chorus makes for a happy hear. ***1/2

Evade Subrahmanyam The song sounds a little like a Bhajan. Chinni Charan's quirky lyrics, Shankar Mahadevan's vocals and the chorus together makes the song a little tongue-in-cheek. It sounds like a prelude to the title track due to the similarity in temperment. ***

Antha Siddanga Sonu Nigam and Shreya Ghoshal sing to Seetarama Sastry's lines for a number which sounds like it is straight out of the 90s. After the second stanza it picks up a little with a more contemporary touch to it. The vocals and the combination is an asset to the flashback (from the 90s) duet. ***

Enduku Chentaki This could well have been a Hindi number, with it's sufi influence and typical instrumental. The mood is melancholy but not melodramatic. It's sad but subtle. Unnikrishnan does a good job at the vocals singing Seetarama Sastry's lyrics. ***1/2

Panchirey Sadhana Sargam begins the song melodiously after which Kirti Sagathia takes over along with a robust chorus. Rama Jogayya Sastry pens in the lyrics for this double-shaded number. A duet about being in love with a few Hindi lyrics to sign off the compilation by S-E-L. ***.25

Last Word Hummable, catchy and contemporary.

Rating: ***.25 (***** Very Good, **** Good, *** Fair, ** Average, * Bad)

Click Here To Download The Songs

Arundathi Review

Cast: Anushka, Deepak. Sonu Sood, Shiyaji Shinde, Satyanarayana, Annapurna, Manorama, Vadivukkarasi and Others.
Cinematography: Senthil Kumar.
Dialogues: Chintapally Ramana.
Editing: Marthand K. Venkatesh.
Music: Koti.
Story & Screenplay: Mallemala Unit.
Producer: M. Shyam Prasad Reddy.
Visual Effects & Creative Director: Rahul Nambiar.
Director: Kodi Rama Krishna.
Banner: Mallemala Entertainments.
Release Date: 16th January, 2009.

Pasupati (Sonu Sood) is a tormented soul, stabbed, locked up in a room built over him with absolutely no space for air to move in. He is the nephew to the King of Gadwal and is married to the king's eldest daughter. A man of vices he indulges in a gruesome rape and murder of a blind dancer who comes to teach his young sister-in-law Anushka. Anushka watches the crime and orders his killing when her sister commits suicide unable to live with him. Pasupati is buried alive in the palace and his soul craves for freedom.

Years later Arundati (Anushka) arrives in Gadwal for her wedding and an old lady in the house narrates the entire story of Jaijamma (Anushka) whose portrait now is hung on the wall. Arundati is the only female born after many generations and it is now believed that she is born to kill the soul which has escaped from the grave.

Pasupati's soul now fully armed with magical powers makes a re-entry strangely again at the time of her wedding and it's Arundati's turn to seek help from a Fakir played Sayaji Shinde. The director makes the film memorable by interplaying elements back and forth and Anushka is stunning, does justice to both roles as the courageous Jejamma and as the helpless Arundati.

The drama is etched perfectly, building the suspense, underlying the tension and grabs you right from the start. The intensity is such that you'd feel suffocated like the soul in captivity and even feel connected to a character as gullible as Arundati who arrives for her wedding, only to know that the onus is on her to kill Pasupati's atma. Her helplessness, her denial and all other expressions are a delight to watch.

Sayaji Shinde is spell binding, he is spectacular and for once you don't seem, it is the character that involves you. Sonu Sood shows his prowess as an actor. A credible piece of work from everyone. The script is so well written, so ingeniously handled and the costumes are in tune. The background score, the drum dance, the photography, the graphics or the dialogues …all are taut and gripping. It doesn't drag, and by the time the end credits roll…you leave the theatre gratified having read and seen a contemporary socio-fantasy. Thumbs up for MS Reddy.

Rating: **** (***** Very Good, **** Good, *** Fair, ** Average, * Bad)

Maska Music Review

After a long hiatus, Chakri composes songs that are sure to stay on charts for some time. Just when you give up on him, he comes out with a surprise. Nothing mind-blowing, the songs are all proper commercial stuff that have a familiar tinge to it. And a definite asset to the movie.

Hare Hare Rama Maska's opening number is energetic and has a young sound to it. It's foot-tapping and you can almost hear loudspeakers in every festive occasion for the next six months churning out this number. Utter a silent prayer and thank God-it's not Chakri who sang this number; and it wouldn't really have suited his voice quality either. Suraj Jagan does a good job with the vocals as does Kandikonda with the lyrics in this danceable number. ***1/2

Gunde Godarila Zubin Garg and Kausalya pick up on the playful start to a soothing and soft number that still has an energy quotient to keep you awake. Kandikonda's lyrics accompanied by the cozy instrumental combination really makes for a interesting number to have amidst all the dhinchak dance songs. ***1/2



Kalloki Dilloki Now this kind of a number kind of suits Chakri, who renders this number enthusiastically. Kandikonda pens down the usual love-struck lyrics meant for this genre. There's no path-breaking stuff happening right now. But this is solid commercially-viable, approved by the old-schoolers (who need to retire) type of songs meant for similar schools of filmmaking. A 'Choopulto Guchi Guchi' kind of number. ***.25

Kalagannana Kalagannana Chakri and Kausalya render this song, and you wish someone else did. The song itself is a sweetly intense love song with a brief English chorus and drums as the key instrument. The other instrumental used is also used well. A different choice in male vocals could have gone a long way, but it's still a good hear. ***1/2



Aa Vaipunna Ee Vaipunna Hariharan and Sadhana Sargam-a very orthodox but bulls-eye combi. It works, and this duet by them is very hummable and peppy. Again, like all the other numbers except the preceeding one, it's a 'cut chesthe ooty' song. Meaning, not story-telling or pulling the movie forward. It's just there for the decorative element. That works too. ***1/2

Bhagdad Gajadongai Vastha Seriously! This sounds like a DSP number and Ravi Verma almost sounds like DSP. The title track is husky, sensual and has a dark energy about it. It's very contemporary and reminds you of the wild, wild west except there's some rap adding in it for some effect. The vocals, especially Sunidhi Chauhan and even Verma, along with the instrumental make it an entertaining number. Hopefully, the visual backs the sound up. A clear pick of the album. ***.75

Last Word After Desamuduru, Chakri's very, very Paisa Vasool album. There's no song that needs you to press the skip button.

Rating: ***1/2 (***** Very Good, **** Good, *** Fair, ** Average, * Bad)

Click here to download the songs