MUSIC REVIEW : DANGAL

Aamir Khan and Pritam’s last collaboration was not exactly a masterpiece. But with what looks like a winner from the “Chillar Party” director, let us see what Pritam has in store for us this time.

“HAANIKAARAK BAPU” is a lyrical as well musical gem which oozes with creativity. Everything about this song seems apt. Firstly, Pritam dishes out a very catchy Rajasthani folk tune topping it with a rock feel. The tune itself along with the arrangements is a winner.

Secondly, the two singers – Sarwar Khan & Sartaz Khan Barna are fabulous. Be it their perfectly-in-tune rendition or their prose portions, they are terrific. The chorus portions are very good too.

But the real winner of the song is Amitabh Bhattacharya. Listen to every single word of the song carefully and you will realize what potential he has. His lyrics are awesome. They are highly humorous and very innovative. You can’t help but marvel at his witty words. They make you smile at times, laugh out loud at times and even break into a guffaw. With a correct mix of hindi and Hariyanvi words, this one is one of his best written songs till date.   

“DHAAKAD” is one hell of a track. The word “Dhaakad” comes from the word “Dhaak” which means a lasting impression / personality. And this track is indeed a dhaakad one.

The lyrics are mindblowing. Pritam does a wonderful job by roping in Raftaar. He infuses so much attitude into the track. For me, this song contains rap better than all the rap songs to have come out in bollywood till date. Plus this one is super trippy. Also, the entire attitude of the song goes so well with the theme of the film that one can’t help but fall for this track.

There is another version where Aamir Khan comes behind the mic. The perfectionist he is, Aamir starts off pretty well. He almost matches in intensity, accent and attitude with Raftaar. But somewhere in the middle, he himself starts enjoying a bit too much, and by the time the track ends, he sounds a little too enthusiastic. It seems as if he is deliberately trying not to smile and deliver rap with a straight face.

But overall, he does a pretty decent job with the rap. And ditto for his flawless hariyanvi accent throughout the track.

“GILEHRIYAAN” – There are certain words which when used in Hindi songs, evoke an altogether different feeling.

“Gilehriyaan” is one such word.  I mean, how does Amitabh Bhattacharya come up with such lovely ideas?

This is a song of a free spirited girl singing to herself. With a lovely and lilting melody, Pritam creates a sweet and magical tune. His biggest achievement lies in extracting an award winning performance from Jonita Gandhi. It is high time we give more recognition to this much underrated singer in bollywood. She sounds pitch perfect. There is a very comforting factor in her voice which immediately puts you at ease. Be it the initial verses or the high pitched antaras, she is flawless.

But once again, the lyricist steals the show. This guy is a genius. He writes such amazing stuff. Below are few of the best lines from the song –

“Ek nayi si dosti,

Aasmaan se ho gayi,

Zameen mujhse jalke munh banaake bole

Tu bigad rahi hai.

Zindagi bhi aaj kal,

Gintiyon se oob ke

Ganit ke aakdon ke saath ek aadha

Sher padh rahi hai.”

“IDIOT BANNA” is a wedding song. The word “Banna” traditionally means “husband”. It also means a traditional folk song sung by the ladies of the groom’s side. This song seems to be just that.

With a very beautiful mix of folk and contemporary sounds, Pritam creates a very hummable and instantly catchy tune. The Nooran sisters are in superb form. They are a bit restrained than few of their recent songs and they sound really good.

Amitabh bhattacharya writes some hilarious lyrics which should make for some enjoyable picturization on screen.

Overall, this one is a situational track but even as a standalone audio song, it is a well made track.

The way Arijit Singh starts “NAINA”, one is immediately reminded of “Accha chalta hoon, duuao mein yaad rakhna..”

But the similarities end there. What follows is a lyrically superior song with a gorgeous composition by Pritam. What lovely instruments he uses – sitar, harmonium, duff, and the guitar. As if the tune wasn’t magical enough, we have Arijit who delivers nothing but sheer brilliance. He sounds amazingly good.

As for the lyrics, the use of the word “Mrig Trishna” is proof enough of how good Amitabh is.

“DANGAL (TITLE TRACK)” is the best song of the album. There is no doubt about that. And it is Daler paaji’s show all the way.

After a pretty high pitched overdose of him in “Mirzya”, Daler Mehndi is top notch here. His voice seems the perfect choice for such a song. It is his vocals which uplift the song and give us a rousing feeling.

But the icing on the cake is Pritam’s AWESOME arrangements. The brilliant guitars in the beginning or the frenzied drums throughout the song are superb. But the best thing about the song is the choral rendition of the lines – “Re Lath gaad doon, Re Jaada paad doon.” It is this particular portion that gives the required goosebumps. Plus, Pritam’s masterstroke lies in the difference in the rendition of this portion. While the initial portion is chanted without any tune, the same lines are chanted in tune during the later stage of the song.

This song should make for some stunning visuals onscreen.

OVERALL, creating an album for a theme based movie is a difficult task. We had a similar film on wrestling few months ago for which Vishal – Shekhar gave us a very good soundtrack. Where Pritam goes ahead is the way he creates more situational music. While “Sultan” had good music, most of the songs were contemporary and less of situation – based. But “Dangal” is different. Given the kind of perfection Aamir Khan expects, it looks as if Pritam has completely lived up to his as well as our expectations.

Almost all the tracks are situational. And yet, every single song is a gem – be it in terms of singing, arrangements or lyrics.

Amitabh Bhattacharya deserves accolades for this work of his.

As for Pritam, he is on a roll. He delivers one of his career best albums here. Way to go!

MY RATINGS – 9 / 10