(You can listen to songs online here)
In true Bickram Ghosh style, the item number Tanha Raatein is replete with World Music elements, exotic percussion playing away to a predominantly Latino lounge-ish template. And being bread and butter stuff for her, Sunidhi Chauhan does a wonderful job at vocals. A “premium” item number for a change, if I may call it that! 🙂 Dhundo stands out mainly for Sonu Nigam‘s vocal dependability, and for some interesting orchestral elements from the composer. The base tune per se is a plain affair. The remix is middling. More Spanish follows with the June Bannerjee-sung track called Kisne Pehchaana, and is engaging despite another commonplace base tune. The acoustic Spanish loop that plays on throughout the song is addictive!
If the previous two songs were lacking on the base tunes front, Chup Tha Paani sees Bickram Ghosh make amends for that. Wonderfully composed and equally well-rendered by Ronita De, Chup Tha Paani is indeed the pick of the album. In this too the composer’s work on the percussive elements is worth noting. But what follows next is a shocker, a composition too pedestrian for Bickram Ghosh standards. Except for the fact that Rupankar sounds similar to Suraj Jagan, there is nothing much interesting about the rock song Is Mein Hai Chamak. But the composer ends on a high note with a short and sweet folk song sung by Dohar. Though I could not recognize the language of the lyrics, the North-Eastern flavour is evident in the orchestration. And even if you do not understand the song you will be hooked to Khasi Tingya due to the rustic appeal the tune carries and the simple arrangement to match.
While Bickram Ghosh has tried to make the score for Gumshuda Bollywood-friendly, it still contains the definitive Ghosh touch in its World music infusion. For that reason and the seemingly parallel line the movie seems to be made on, chances of this soundtrack getting listened to and appreciated by a lot of Bollywood followers seem less. It would be sad to see some good songs get wasted.
Music Aloud Rating: 7.5/10
Recommended Tracks: Chup Tha Paani, Tanha Raatein, Khasi Tingya
