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= RAH-VAN |
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| By
Behindwoods Visitor Shreesha
B.U |
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views expressed in this column are that of the visitor.
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After
the much hyped Gautham Menon & ARR
combination in Vinnaithaandi varuvaayaa
comes perhaps the most consistent ‘hit
combination’ in the last 18 years
of Indian film music, Mani Ratnam &
ARR in Raavanan. Mani Ratnam now perhaps
is not the director we have known him
to be in his hey days, and Ilayaraja was
fortunate to work with MR at his best
and IR gave his best. It was MR and ARR,
who with Roja helped their individual
cause as well as the cause of Tamil films
and technicians go “National”.
Strangely, since then, MR’s toil
in making ‘classics’ as well
as movies that have a pan India appeal
has often suffered regionally and has
been heavily compensated nationally. Exceptions
being the brilliant Iruvar and Kannathil
Muthammital! One thing that has been consistent
in MR’s movies has been the splendid
music. MR’s ear for music has produced
gems in Idhaya Koil, Idhayathai Thirudadhey,
Mouna Ragam to name a few, and it’s
that quality in him that made him unearth
another genius in ARR. MR, of late is
happy being inspired with happenings around
him or icons in real life or in mythologies,
to pen scripts. Raavan faithfully follows
that list. It would be futile to write
a review of ARR’s music after a
few listens. After repeated listening,
here is the review….
Veera-
Vijay Prakash, Keerthi Sagathia, Mustafa
Kutoane
Unknown sounds start this song…
but the “Uh Ee
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Ee Ee Oh" instantly catches on you and “Veeraaaaa...
Veeraaaaaaa”
sets the song on fire to a foot tapping rhythm. The
African tone for this song lets you visualize fun
in the jungle and Rahman lets loose a cacophony of
sounds from his huge database of sounds that fits
so perfectly in this energetic track. The “raavandheen
ramandheeen” sounds funny yet terrific, suiting
the mood of this song. The singers freak out, making
this song an instant hit. Sadly it’s short.
Usure Pogudhey – Karthik
Haunting mystical chords opens this song and you know
you are in for something remarkable and it doesn’t
take long to realize its Karthik. Karthik’s
fervent singing captures all emotions of Vairamuthu’s
passionate lyrics exposing pain and hope so delightfully.
A very western orchestration that starts off peacefully
and touches a crescendo in the middle, with synth
sounds, violin and pieces of guitar strings blending
perfectly, elevating the grandeur of this song. The
music in the last 45 seconds culminates to a feeling
of grief, yet the song doesn’t lose its majestic
character in melancholy. Don’t blame yourself
if you remember the “Yen uyire” song from
“Uyire”. You can feel the soul of it.
Kodu Poatta - Benny Dayal
Arrogance is what you would define the character of
this song. Benny does full justice to the character
of this song. Lyrics at the beginning would sound
silly, repeated hearing and the attitude of the song
make the words feel much better. The music and instruments
too carry the same character, save for the brief interlude
when the shehanai plays, yet the “hey hey”
in the background carries aggression. The song is
heavily orchestrated with drums of all kinds and heavy
guitar strings strewn throughout the song. The song
carries more pace towards the end, folding up abruptly.
Kaattu Sirukki - Shankar Mahadevan, Anuradha
Sriram
An infectious “aaa yee aaue ayeaa aeau”
chant set to tune in the back ground of a cool breeze
faintly whistling begins this song and you are hooked
instantly. Anuradha Sriram starts in a very folksy
voice with Shankar Mahadevan joining her. You start
nodding shaking your head to the tune. For once you
feel the singers could have done better. Is it their
experience that robbed us off the charm, a new comer
or someone different could have provided us? Or was
it the simplicity of the song? There is nothing imaginative
in the orchestration of the song. Credit Rahman for
his “sound engineering”. Shehanai and
the santoor interludes offer temporary relief from
the surge of electronic sounds to a very typical rhythm
that plays throughout the song. It would still find
many takers for its “Instant Rahman” feel.
Kalvare - Shreya Goshal
The best thing about Rahman’s music is his ability
to come out with those sweet melodies that has minimal
orchestration that transports you into bliss. Be it
“Aahista” song from Swades or quite recently
“Lukka chuppi” from RDB. This song begins
skillfully with Shreya’s mellifluous voice.
The interlude gives you a déjà vu which
immediately acts as a dampener and the song turns
out to be very ordinary, despite some attractive flute
notes. Shreya with her beautiful voice can do little
to lift the song. Perhaps it’s got to do with
the expectation bar set very high for such Rahman
compositions.
Kedakkari - Benny Dayal, Bhagyaraj, Rayhanah,
Tanvi Shah
Rahman dons the magician’s hat for this song.
Its wedding time and Rahman deviates from the norm
practiced generally and adds color and zest to this
high octane song. Listen to the genius blend carnatic
instruments so seamlessly in this folksy tune with
some energetic singing by the singers. Don’t
miss the “sound of claps” in “kedda
kedda kari aduppule irruku” - that’s innovativeness
for you. The instruments all have a mind of their
own and join the singers celebrating and teasing.
The end is even better with all the singers and instruments
competing with each other in upping the tempo resulting
in unlimited fun.
The music of “Raavanan” almost fits the
character perfectly. It’s amazing how Rahman
creates character in music that suits the demands
of the personalities in the movie. The music would
definitely make better sense on screen with the characters
playing the music. “Raavanan” is no masterpiece
like earlier “Uyire” or “Iruvar”
to name a few, which had more soul in its compositions.
Also Rahman can do a little more in erasing that “déjà
vu” in our minds when we listen to his new compositions.
Its no secret that Rahman's songs are "better
your player, better the song quality", and that
would hurt people who cannot afford that luxury. On
the whole, Rahman perhaps composed “Raavanan”
with “Ten Heads” and sadly just one “Heart”.
Shreesha B.U
bushreesha@gmail.com |
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| Tags
: Raavanan,
Vikram,
Aishwarya
Rai, Mani
Ratnam, AR
Rahman,
Prithviraj,
Priyamani,
Karthik,
Prabhu |
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