Vinnai Thaandi Varuvaaya – Music Review

Vinnai Thaandi Varuvaaya – Music for love to feed on!

Being Rahman’s first Tamil album after Oscar and the long awaited Gautham-Rahman album, Vinnai Thaandi Varuvaaya has raised the expectation levels amidst music lovers of all sorts. And now, the sound track consists of 7 numbers, uniquely different from each other, and Thamarai’s immaculate lines continue to shine.

Male Harmony:Benny Dayal, Devan Ekambaram, Karthik, Vijay Prakash, Naresh Iyer,  A.R.Rahman , Alphonse Joseph and  Blaaze,

Female harmony:Kalyani Menon, Chinmayi, Suzanne D’ Mello and Shreya Ghoshal

Lyrics:Thamarai, Kaithapram, Kalyani Menon and Blaaze

1. Aaromale*****

Singer: Alphonse Joseph

Lyrics: Kaithapram

A soft but powerful malayalam rock song which Reminds us of the late 80’s English rock stars and recent mallu rock albums like Aviyal and Thaalam. Alphonse’s vocals take us high when unleashed to the max. And about the tune, it’s one of those Rahman melodies which will haunt your music buds for a long time. The entrancing use of the guitar and the mellifluous chorus will turn your speakers in to a midnight’s stage and your room in to an open auditorium!

2.Omana Penne*****

Singers: Benny Dayal, Kalyani Menon

Lyrics: Thamarai, Kalyani Menon(Malayalam lines)

To be simple, this song is a scoop of vanilla ice-cream with a cherry on top! The composer’s imagination takes you for a magical mystery tour when the Nadaswaram piece begins in the background. Benny Dayal’s already feminine style of singing and the use of synthesiser makes him a flawless instrument competing with the Nadaswaram. And the sparingly used Kalyani Menon’s part in musical Malayalam is the cherry on top. If a master chef like Rahman tries a new dish with Tamil, Malayalam and a few table spoons full of quality music, it shall be called Omana Penne!

3.Mannippaya*****

Singers: A.R.Rahman, Shreya Ghoshal

Lyrics: Thamarai

As the name suggests this is a sorry song which will never make you feel sorry for listening to it. Once again the age old saying that the best of melodies are born in the saddest of situation, proves to be true. Evidently this song is a descendant of Kathale from Duet, Uyire from Bombay, Oru Poiyavathu from Jodi and Aaruyire from Guru. Shreya Ghoshal’s voice is as sweet as a melting chocolate and Rahman hits us with his voice of a lover in sad plight.The christian choir like rendering of a few kurals at the latter end of this song blends two apparently dissimilar things and is very different from that of the Kural song we listened to in Connexions. A song close to the heart of love and everlasting lovers!

4.Anbil Avan*****

SIngers: Devan Ekambaram, Chinmayi

Lyrics: Thamarai

This is a marriage song which asks us to choose love. Here we see a blend of Hindu and Christian musical elements. Also the music sensibility of this song reminds us the golden times of MSV. Devan who is back to Rahman’s camp after a long time is more mature in his timbre and Chinmayi’s versatile vocals aptly fit this amorous tune. As Rahman said earlier, this song is a mix of two cultures. The use of Mridangam Nadaswaram and Church Organ along with synthesised chorus creates the needed atmosphere!

5. Hosanna*****

Singers: Vijay Prakash, Blaaze, Suzanne D’Mello

Lyrics: Thamarai, Blaaze (Rap)

‘A breezy hip-hop song with an intoxicating orchestration’ would be the perfect definition of Hosanna. This song is like that beautiful city of our dreams where we will never find our way out. Turns and twists with a touch of pathos can do magic and that’s what Hosanna does. Once again Rahman establishes that for a song to be effective, technology should be used cautiously. Vijay Prakash’s definite voice takes control of the whole song to the last word, where as Suzanne’s voice supports the lead neatly from the background. The rhythm of this song bears close similarity to Tu Muskura from Yuvvraj.  And in between, Blazee’s rap comes in like a flash and takes us off in style. And Thamarai’s lyrics for this song is the best of the album. Save me, I beseech you! hails this lover with Hosanna!

6.Vinnaithaandi Varuvaya****

Singer: Karthik

Lyrics: Thamarai

Here what we have is an acoustic song with a lot of emotions packed into it. Karthik is as alive and kicking as usual and as anytime before. The tune is fresh and takes some time to grow into you. Being the title track, this number sets the tone of the film. Must be seen with visuals to be appreciated completely. And we can see boys singing this around the city with a guitar in a few months time. A song dedicated to the moon lovers!

7.Kannukkul Kannai****

Singer: Naresh Iyer

Lyrics: Thamarai

A fast paced pop-rock number packed with a lot of techno elements. Rahman’s favourite singer Naresh Iyer drives it home in full throated ease. Apart from a strong resemblance to a couple of songs from Rahman’s latest Hindi album Blue, this number reminds us of Maramkothiye from Anbe Aaruyire. The violin sound which peeps in continuously is a pleasure to listen. At last a song for Discotheque lovers and dance lovers. This song raises our curiosity to see Simbu dance to its tune. Thamarai’s lyrics cleverly portray the mind of a young man trying to win the heart of his lady love without being too cliched.

Though the wait for the album was frustrating, Rahman dispatches tunes which are worth the wait and has tried to do something different and that which he hasn’t done before. Though something in the lines of Minsara kanavu, Indian and Alaipayuthey would have guaranteed him a winner, he steps on to a different plane in Vinnai thaandi Varuvaayaa. And the tunes mean business and not of the syrupy stuff. So Vinnai Thaandi Varuvaaya is an album showcasing different images of love!

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Vaaranam Aayiram – Movie Review

Varanam Aayiram- Paradise lost and regained!

Gautham Menon‘s Magnum Opus Varanam Aayiram has come out with a million flying colors. Being a biography, Vaaranam Aayiram blooms in the lines of Aarilirunthu arupathu varai, Autograph and Thavamai Thavamirunthu. As the trailer says, ‘This is not an action film’ but instead a commercially salted Father-son flick. Though Gautham Menon has borrowed a few western colors to deck his epic, Vaaranam Aayiram compels us to say ‘where he picks up doesn’t matter but where he places’.

The plot is worked out by a first person triple layered narrative. Before the narrative starts, we see Krishnan{Surya}, the old man dying out of a throat cancer. The news is passed on to Major Surya{Surya}, who is currently on a rescue operation a few thousand miles and metres away in a military helicopter. Surya meditates on his own experience and what his mother Malini{Simran} and father Krishnan had told him since his childhood. And so it goes… till Surya comes back to perform funeral rites for his father.

To begin with, Vaaranam Aayiram is truly an incensed classic, filled with cross culture references and trends. Gautham has unleashed his full potential in his dream project. May God bless him for his pains in handling the narrative. The first half swims down our throat in full mettled ease while the latter half is the fruit of tree of knowledge. As a complete whole the film is but life, life and nothing but life. For Surya and Simran this innings breaks their own previous records. And about Shamira, she’s the Poet’s ‘Lady Love’, on celluloid. The dialogues are better than any other Gautham Menon film and Romance, flows like ‘sweet Thames’. The second half which contains the more serious side of life,goes on in its own pace and may tire the audience, but the defect lies not with the screen-writer but on the eye and mind of the beholder. The positive energy of this movie is another facet which our society requires to go ahead. In this regard, Vaaranam Aayiram becomes, Gauthams’Autograph’. The Production design and the picturisation of the songs make Varanam Aayiram into ‘thousand hues’. Right from the amorous Backdrops to the intertwining ‘Ilayarajaism’, Vaaranam Aayiram, ‘its a rock song daddy!’

At times we are made to think if its a correct decision to put Surya on the father role, since its too heavy for him in selected areas. In the next place, the movie’s Tamil sensibility is pulled down by the use of English in many important scenes. A few minutes before the ‘Annal mele’ song in Divya Spandana‘s episode are hackneyed and test our patience. Surya’s visit to California may not be justifiable from a few view points. The ‘Aditya’ stratagem seem to spoil the tonality of the movie but the story-telling talents of Gautham saves it at the end.

The Art Director of the movie has sculpturesquely given life to Gautham’s imagination. Rajeevan and Anthony have once again done enthralling work. Harris Jeyaraj‘s hypnotising soundtrack has provided us with a quality musical. Working on a project like vaaranam Aayiram is tough as nails and two thumbs up to Gautham Menon and his crew. Vaaranam Aayiram says “Life is not a bed of roses”

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Vaaranam Aayiram- Music Review

Vaaranam Aayiram – Musical Rainbow!

Gautham Menon and his melodius accomplice Harris Jeyaraj come together once again for Vaaranam Ayiram. After getting hold of the rights, to popularise the songs Sony BMG has given a few songs to the FM stations five days prior to the actual audio release. Harris Jeyaraj has composed seven different numbers for this film. Let us look at them more closely.

Male Harmony: Krish, Benny Dayal,  Hariharan, Karthik, Naresh Iyer, SPB Charan, Devan, V.Prasanna, Clinton, Solar Sai

Female Harmony: Shruti Hassan, Prashanthini, Sudha Ragunathan

1. Adiye Kolluthey****
Singers: Krish, Benny Dayal, Shruti Hassan
A small sticker on the cd cover says “Including the smash hit Adiye Kolluthe”. Basically a rock number built on Thamarai’s enthusing lyrics. Shruti Hassan’s stylistic voice aptly fit into this western song. Benny and Krish sing wondrously to give the music instruments an arduous time. As usual, full of strange haunting chants and guitar interludes. Though the rhythm gives us a ‘heard it somewhere’ feeling, the increasing tempo compensates it. Probably this song is Gautham Menon’s personal favourite. Fit to be a hi… oops! its already a smash hit. On the whole, this number is a “thrilling sweetheart!”

2. Nenjukkul Peidhidum****
Singers: Hariharan, Devan, V.Prasanna
This song hails Hariharan as the divine lord of melodies! Thamarai’s lyrics for this song will be among the best ever made in this decade. Multitudes of chorus are used in this song by harris. With a limited number of instruments, this number creates the maximum effect. A cool song to depict the burning passions of the lover. The guitar pieces which run through the song hits it  for a home run. Another awesome melody in Harris Jeyaraj collection. “Romance Romance and Romance for all days of the year”.

3.Yethi Yethi***
Singers: Benny Dayal, Naresh Iyer, Solar Sai
A song from the Hip-Hop tradition. The ‘Sokkuthe Manam’ TV show star Solar Sai sings along with Benny and Naresh in this number. This song reminds us a lot of other numbers such as ‘Ada gada’ from sathyam, ‘Taxi taxi’ from ‘sakkarakkatti’ and at times ‘Adhiradikkaran’ from ‘Sivaji’. With a whistling opening, Muthukumar’s’s lyrics bringout the pure life of the dirty college students. The acoustic guitar interludes of this song gives us ‘the Ilayaraja effect’. Pretty ordinary song when compared to the earlier two. But still, rejoice with this when a few good friends are around.

4.Mundhinam****
Singers: Naresh Iyer, Prashanthini
A pleasant soft rock number packed in with a variety of interludes{Sax, mouth organ, drums}. Though justly used, the drum beats grab our attention. Once again Thamarai’s lyrics claims commendation. At times Naresh Iyer’s voice ‘unsexes’ itself to blend with Prashanthini’s voice which contributes to the soft ‘feminine touch’ of this song. With a variety of instruments Harris Jeyaraj has orchestrated this melody to perfection. ‘Rock’ seems to be the core genre of this album.

5.Oh! Shanthi! Shanthi***
Singers: Clinton, SPB Charan
Clinton is back with a bang in this little, soft rock number. Sounds like a softer version of  ‘Mudhal naal indru’. Clinton’s the ‘Oh Shanthi’ refrain boosts up the energy level of this song. However the ordinary rhythm of this song makes us to associate a lot of earlier songs of Harris Jeyaraj. Might turn out to be an awesome background theme and ‘sing along’, if used suitably. “laali laali laali!”

6.Ava Enna***
Singers: Karthik, V.Prasanna
A soft kuthu song decorated with flowers of melancholy. Reminds us ‘Siva siva siva sankara’ from ‘Suyamvaram’ and ‘Appa amma’ from ‘Dreams’. Heretoo Harris finds a little room for his guitar.  Thamarai’s ordinary words are shouldered well by Karthik’s versatile voice and stupendous pronunciation. Though no scope for novelty, Harris has peppered this song with gentle choruses and bass beats.

7.Anul Mele****
Singers: Sudha ragunathan
A song from the Indian Classical music world. Sudha Ragunathan’s genius breaths eternal life into  this song and makes it good. Certain areas of this song resemble ‘Enadhuyire’ from ‘Bheema’. This sounds like an ‘Ilayaraja melody’ too. Will become the favourite of classical music listeners. Finally in this song Harris has accomodated his favourite: Vilolin along with Veena. Seems to convey a particular situation of the plot. Since 90% of the songs are in purely pronounced and unadulterated Tamil, ‘Vaaranam Aayiram’ receives special applause!.

-Spontic

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