Barsaat Music Review

  After a wait for about a month, since the time the first promo was out, the music of ' Barsaat - A Sublime Love Story ' hits the stand. And hasn't the wait been worth it? One would have wondered that the delay in the music release for this Suneel Darshan flick would have dampened the interest in the music score. Also the curiosity would have gone down. But it has been just the opposite for this Bobby Deol - Bipasha Basu - Priyanka Chopra starrer where the buzz stayed on to be positive while getting hotter with every passing day.

Needless to say, the combination of producer-director Suneel Darshan, composer duo Nadeem Shravan and lyricist Sameer have more often than not come up with chart-topping music that is rich in Indian melody. Case in point being ' Ek Rishtaa: The Bond of Love ' (Good), ' Haan Maine Bhi Pyaar Kiya ' (Above-average), ' Andaaz ' (Superb) and most recently ' Mere Jeevan Saathi ' (Above-average). Another common factor amongst all these movies has been the presence of Akshay Kumar. He was originally signed for ' Barsaat ' as well but walked out due to personal issues paving way for Bobby Deol. Incidentally Bobby Deol also made his debut with home production 'Barsaat' exactly a decade back and coincidentally that too had music by Nadeem Shravan and lyrics by Sameer.

It would be apt to say that 'Barsaat' belongs to Alka Yagnik who features in 7 out of total 8 tracks either as a solo or in a duet. Other Nadeem Shravan regulars like Kumar Sanu, Abhijeet, Udit Narayan and Sonu Nigam appear in a song each.

Kumar Sanu's fans would be thrilled to have him back rendering the opening number of this melodious album. A heart-warming number, ' Barsaat Ke Din Aaye ' has simple lyrics put to an even simpler yet melodious tune. Kumar Sanu's 'alaap' at the beginning and the end of the number should form an integral part of the background score as it brings the feel of romance alive. Nadeem Shravan stick to what they are best at and most capable of doing and prove once again that melody reigns in any season! Alka Yagnik is as always at her best while rendering for a NS tune. This song is going to top the charts in quick time.

Alka Yagnik is going the Lata Mangeshkar way while continuing to render romantic songs for young girls and modulating her voice accordingly. ' Badi Mushkil Hai ' is an apt example where she conveys the first love feelings of a young girl in her trademark sweet'n'young rendition. Abhijeet, in spite of all his 'off the mike' remarks, comes on his own while getting behind the mike. He justifies his point of being selective in his singing once again and comes up with a wonderful performance that would make the hearts swoon. A charming composition, ' Badi Mushkil Hai ' (the namesake of which was also rendered by Abhijeet in SRK starrer ' Anjaam ') is second in the series of melodious tracks.
 
In continuation to the wonderful work done in his first album ' Chanda Ki Doli ' as a singer-composer, Sonu Nigam gets into the lovey-dovey mood once again in ' Pyaar Aaya '. A slow paced and soulful track that is best enjoyed while sitting back and relaxing, it has both Sonu and Alka Yagnik getting in a sober'n'subtle mood. The best part is that all the songs in the album maintain a consistent feel throughout and deliver what was promised.

Arabian, western and bhangra music are merged for ' Nakhre Bhi Utha ' – the first song in the album that deviates from melody to get into a song'n'dance song. Alisha Chinoy gets behind the mike for this party time track that has Bipasha Basu gyrating to the heavy duty beats. Though it does sound distracting while getting into the flow of an otherwise melodious album, ' Nakhre ' could work well for Bipasha Basu fans who would love to see her back in action.

The album gets back to being vintage Nadeem Shravan with ' Chori Chori Ladi Ankhiyan ' that begins with rustic vocals of Sapna Awasthi. Alka Yagnik and Udit Narayan step in a few moments later in this love song set on Rajsasthani folk music. A constant rhythm is maintained throughout with number of Indian instruments used to perfection. In spite of Udit Narayan's presence, it is Alka Yagnik who comes up trump while Sameer does it again with his simplistic lyrics. This track should turn out to be a visual treat and it has to be seen how different is its picturization from the similar songs in ' Paheli ' that too had a strong desert flavor!

An even better track with typical Nadeem Shravan stamp comes up as a rhythm based ' Aaja Aaja Piya '. With a strong local Indian flavor, it takes you back to the first half of 90s when Nadeem Shravan established their base with an array of hit soundtracks. Alka Yagnik goes solo this time around and does a wonderful job as always. The way she mouths 'raja' intermittently in the song, it reminds of Karishma Kapoor's ' Raja Hindustani ' that too had NS doing the honors.

Her solo act continues into the next number ' Maine Tumse Pyaar Bahaut Kiya ' that takes you back even behind in time – this time the 60s. The arrangements, especially the violins and the chorus, give a nostalgic feel to this song about this woman who feels cheated by her lover. For this number that appears to be in a party scene, you can easily visualize a 60s setting with guests in a big hall and a piano being played on the center stage. Alka modulates her voice remarkably for this sad track while getting the feeling right for pain, hatred and rejection in quick succession.
 
Foot tapping effects of ' Chori Chori ' and ' Aaja Aaja Piya ' continue with ' Saajan Saajan Saajan ' that re-establishes the point that Nadeem Shravan and Sameer are best in the business if you are looking for 'shuddh-hindustani' score sans any western indulgence. The track, in addition to majority of other tracks from ' Barsaat ' has a universal appeal and it won't be wrong to say that the music would be a big hit in the interiors of India.

One may call it an over-statement but if the initial reactions on hearing the music are to be believed, the album is destined to be amongst the Top-3 chartbusters of the year, until and unless something exceptionally good comes up in the second half of the year (who knows, maybe Suneel Darshan's own diwali release 'Dosti' with the same combination of Nadeem-Shravan-Sameer may throw up a challenge). All the eight tracks (with an exception of Alisha Chinoy's ' Nakhre ', which is a peppy track) are soaked in melody and would be picked up like hot cakes by Nadeem Shravan fans. The album is vintage Nadeem Shravan, which scales to greater heights due to Alka's presence throughout the album.

An album that is destined to be extremely popular from day one of its release, do not be surprised if you see all eight songs appearing in promos one after another as each of them has a potential to create a place for it's own.

No doubt ' Barsaat' should be breaking records of all earlier work of Suneel Darshan, while giving strong competition to the music sales of his own ' Andaaz '. If there is an album that would run neck to neck with hot favorite 'Dus' this summer, it has to be 'Barsaat'.