MUSIC REVIEW : DIL BECHARA

It has been a while since Rahman has had two consecutive hindi releases - the first being "99 Songs" which was a beautiful album and which improved my lockdown because there was an album which was released entirely unlike the trend of releasing singles these days.

"Dil Bechara" is a special film mainly because we will be seeing Late Sushant Singh Rajput for the last time in a new film. On paper, this movie has a lot of scope for music. However it remains to be seen how well does debut director & well known casting director Mukesh Chhabra picturise and place the songs.

The TITLE SONG immediately transported me back to 2007 when "Jaane tu ya jaane na" released. That film's jazzy title song was similar in a way. The song is instantly catchy and ARR sings this one in his typical style. He is excellent in the antara. Backing him up with hinglish lyrics is Amitabh Bhattacharya who writes some cheesy lyrics but they are in sync with the college flavor of the song. The two music interludes are quirky but catchy.

This is one song which grew on me after multiple hearings - probably one of Rahman's best sung songs in recent times. The way he croons "Tera budday day day" is too good.

A more groovy and bass filled version of the title track is "FRIENDZONE" which I liked even more.

"TAARE GINN" brings in two of the best singers in the music industry together - Mohit Chauhan and Shreya Ghoshal are fantastic. The beauty of the song is accentuated by the gorgeous arrangements (Macedonian Symphonic Orchestra).

Other two highlights of the song are the juxtaposition of the male and female voices and the scale change of the song midway - breathtakingly beautiful. The song ends with a lovely violin solo by Suresh Lalwani which is soothing to the core. Overall, this one is a melodious romantic song which you will like humming for a long time. You’ll end up loving it a bit more everytime you hear it.

"KHUL KE JEENA KA" again has Rahman overlapping the voices of Arijit Singh and Shashaa Tirupati who sing in different scales, each one shifting between high and low. Despite of this complex structure, the song is surprisingly easy to sing/hum. The antaras see Arijit going solo and he is excellent.

A big plus point of the song apart from the music is the lyrics by Amitabh Bhattacharya - with gems like " Aao filmon ke be-adab gaane gaate hain ".

Also, the lyrics pretty much sum up the theme of the film. The lyrics are also ironical considering the death of its lead actor.  

Considering the pensive mood of "MAIN TUMHARA", it isn't too difficult to guess where this song will be placed in the film. With minimal arrangements, Hriday Gattani and Jonita Gandhi are at their very best - they make this song a superlative one. With every single hearing, I am only falling more in love with this song. Amitabh Bhattacharya pens some amazing lyrics - "Main jaado ke mahine ki tarah, Aur tum ho pashmine ki tarah."

"MASKHARI" sounds straight out of an Imtiaz Ali - A.R Rahman movie. Everything about this song is catchy - the initial portion by Hriday Gattani, the addictive Mandolin hook by Tapas roy and the lead singers. Amitabh Bhattacharya goes in his "Badtameez Dil" avatar, penning lyrics like "Peeda Hari Balm".

Sunidhi Chauhan once again delivers one of her best recent songs. She seems to be delivering her best with ARR - the previous being "Tu Kuja" from Highway. Hriday Gattani too compliments her well. Both the singers seem to be having a ball singing this one! So do the listeners!

With an Arabic flavor, "AFREEDA" is probably the one song in the album which I did not like on first hearing. Honestly, it is not a song everyone will like. Remember "Maiyya Maiyya" from Guru? This one sounds similar at places. The singing by Sana Moussa is top notch - her voice range and diction is very good. The rap portions by Raja Kumari are good too.

However, as I said, this is not everyone's cup of tea. Reactions to this song may vary from being good to downright unlistenable. I literally skipped the song midway during my first hearing. However the song has grown on me with repetitive listens. Even now I don't L-OVE it. I simply L-IKE it.

 "MERA NAAM KIZZIE" with its lovely instrumentation (Clarinet, I am guessing) has a very retro feel to it. This is the ex-title song of the film (Earlier titled Kizzie & Manny). Both the lead singers are in top form - Poorvi Koutish (Who sang the amazing Jwalamukhi) and Aditya Narayan are at their very best. Aditya gets to sing both the low and high notes and he handles both pretty deftly. Amitabh Bhattacharya again impresses with his words, especially the use of common parlance lyrics in the antara.

The last song of the album is an instrumental piece titled "THE HORIZON OF SAUDADE".

The word "Saudade" is a Portuguese word which means -

"A lingering memory of someone or something that you are happy that it is an integral part of yourself. It also means a deep melancholy. It is also called a word that is untranslatable."

This piece is essentially the tune of a portion of "Taare Ginn" with again Suresh Lalwani on the violin. With a sombre tone to it, this piece is beautifully performed. For a film whose ending will not be a happy one, this piece might find a place during the climax or after that (?).

OVERALL, "DIL BECHARA" sees A.R Rahman in crackling form. Along with Amitabh Bhattacharya, he creates sheer magic. The lyrics help a lot - there are examples where good melodies are marred by mediocre lyrics.

After "99 Songs", ARR delivers a consecutive album which is not just good in parts, but as a whole. I also felt the way he experimented with the voice overlapping in "Taare Ginn" and "Khul ke jeene ka" was very nicely executed.

What is my favorite song? Well, to be honest, it keeps on changing everyday!

An infectious album, to say the least!

MY RATING - 9 / 10

Lastly, a BIG thank you to A.R Rahman & Amitabh Bhattacharya for giving Sushant Singh Rajput's last film such a lovely soundtrack. We will all miss him!