Songs at the end.
Jogi follows the same formula that composer-lyricist Arko has been trying in his past few projects, but this is by far the most appealing outcome of his efforts. It also helps that the man makes the prudent decision of staying away from the microphone in all versions of the song. Of the three versions there are, the male variant is bound to be the most popular since it has Shafqat Amanat Ali Khan handling the vocals. To her credit, Aakanksha Sharma does a beautiful job in the female version, but it sounds a bit odd that she is made to sing lines that seem to be written for male voice. Even odder when you notice that Arko has actually written a stanza specific to the female voice in the duet version sung by Yasser Desai and Aakanksha Sharma. That quirk aside, a pleasantly enjoyable song in all three versions which see minor variations in the mellow arrangement from the composer. Main Hoon Saath Tere from JAM8’s Kaushik-Akash-Guddu (aka KAG) is also very formulaic, and less engaging than Jogi; I am still waiting for the day JAM8 come up with something that sounds truly original and clutter breaking. Shivangi Bhayana’s rendition of the track is the relatively better one due to the freshness in her voice; Arijit Singh’s version only adds to the ennui.
When I saw the name Rashid Khan among the composers’ list, I expected a classical-based song. Instead, Tu Banja Gali Benaras Ki turned out to be one of the tried and tested filmi sufi variety, and again features (unnecessarily, in my opinion) three variants. The two male versions are essentially the same except for Asit Tripathy and Shafqat Amanat Ali handling vocals – and the former does a better job. The arrangement features some nice shehnai and harmonium, but is bland otherwise. Asees Kaur’s third variant has a different arrangement, but here too aside of the flute being neatly employed, there isn’t much that is noteworthy. Great singing by Kaur, that said. Anand Raaj Anand’s intense Mera Intekaam Dekhegi has nothing much to offer aside of intensity – the song sounds dated both musically and lyrically. And this too comes in two forms – sung by Krishna Beura and the composer respectively. It is more a testimony to the ineffectiveness of the rest of the soundtrack than the song’s own merit that the remix track Pallo Latke comes across as the most entertaining. Raees & Zain Sam’s take on the Rajasthani folk piece has additional lyrics supplied by Kumaar. The techno-Punjabi packaging and vernacular rapping (Haryanvi in this case, by Fazilpuria) are all familiar really, but it will still keep your foot tapping.
Shaadi Mein Zaroor Aana. Lekin gaane sunna zaroori nahi hai.
Music Aloud Rating: 2.5/5
Top Recos: Pallo Latke, Jogi
This review first appeared in the Mumbai edition of The Hindu.
