You can listen to the songs here.
Arijit Singh’s soulfulness goes a long way in redeeming Muskurane from the overpowering familiarity in its tune and arrangement (the Vishesh factor?). Mohammad Irfan is good but not as effective as Arijit in the unplugged version and hence it rates lower than the original. Composer Jeet Ganguli fares well with Arijit’s second song though, nailing the simple, folk sound in Ek Chiraiyya even as the singer continues the awesomeness from his end. The unplugged version has very few noticeable differences, main one being the composer himself getting behind the mic and doing an okay-ish rendition. Darbadar doesn’t work in its entirety but has some interesting elements about it, and Neeti Mohan’s singing is one of them. The composer really scores in the remaining two tracks though. In the frenzied title track he brings together Ustad Rashid Khan and Usha Uthup with their contrasting styles. The star is without doubt Rashid Khan, with his brilliant alaaps and everything (loved that hint of shubhapantuvarali/todi in the interludes). And then there is Arijit Singh’s third song for the soundtrack, and his best – Soney Do. The brooding shubhapantuvarali/todi-based track had seemed promising in the trailer itself, and it totally delivers – beautifully arranged, and brilliantly sung.
The occasional signs of brilliance apart, Citylights is just average compared to what Jeet Ganguli is known to be capable of, at least in his home turf. This is probably the first time he hasn’t reused any of his Bengali works though.
Music Aloud Rating: 7/10
Top Recos: Soney Do, Citylights, Ek Chiraiyya
