Agneepath - A Musical Beauty

 This Republic Day, Karan Malhotra released his remake of the 1990 Amitabh Bachchan starrer Agneepath. And he has done a good job, no doubt about it. He captures the feel of the story very closely and with very good cinematography and fantastic acting by Hrithik Roshan and Sanjay Dutt, brings the story beautifully to the audience.

 Coming to another part of the movie, the soundtracks, one has to credit Atul and Ajay Gogavale for sweeping the audiences off their feet with some truly superb tracks.

 While the movies and their actors come away with flying colours and enjoy monstrous fame, the music is usually relegated to the background which does not altogether get the appreciation it deserves. Most people overlook the fact that visuals, only when along with the soundtracks, are able to cast their magic on the viewer. The visuals may be able to provide a good layout of the plot, but it is only when one hears the boom of the accompanying sounds that the scene actually comes alive. For instance, imagine an action scene with the background chorus cut off.

 While the visuals add colour, music makes the body sway along the nature of the scene being shown.

Consider the opening tracks accompanying the carnage in the Mandwa village. The very beats give a sinisterness to the scene that action alone could never deliver. Moving on, when Priyanka Chopra dances to the beats of 'Gun, Gun, Guna...' the tune and particular combination of instruments used enlivens the entire atmosphere, which is already beautified by the colourful dance. The bass drum beats add the icing on the cake. Following this is the exotic qawwali 'Shah ka Rutba' featuring an Islamic wedding. Rendered royally by Sukhwinder Singh, Anand Raj Anand and Krishna Beura, this song makes excellent use of fast beats and choruses to give the viewer a thrilling experience (provided there is a good surround sound system) finishing with a interesting crescendo - a western classical chorus. With a good music player, this song is an excellent choice for playlists to listen.

  Then comes the legendary item song 'Chikni Chameli' sung by Shreya Ghosal. While the song is a visual feast with all the ostentations of a ganglord's den and the dancer's (Katrina Kaif) sensual moves, if one manages to listen to the song at all, he (I use 'he' since for obvious reasons boys find it really difficult) would discover a masterpiece. With a rendition that would leave any connoisseur speechless, the music directors produce a mindblowing combination of drums, chords, trumpets whistles, whoops and most of all, echoes to accompany the titillating dance. The complete piece, when seen and heard, literally sends waves of 'oohs' and 'aahs' through the audience.

  As in every bollywood movie, a soft number sung by Sonu Nigam, 'Abhi, Mujhme Kahin' trills on when Hrithik meets his estranged family. This song has a beautiful lulling effect though it has pretty sharp lyrics. The soft rendition by the singer along with the soft tabla accompaniment in between touched up with serene santoor notes

This is followed by the vivid display of celebrations during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival. This is accompanied by the pulsating beats of 'Deva Shree Ganesha'. The drumrolls and pronounced chorus is indeed an excellent treat to the eyes and ears alike. The percussion is near perfect and enraptures the viewer while giving a good feel of the massive festival.

Finishing it off, Hrithik Roshan meets Sanjay Dutt in an epic fight  accompanied by a thrilling score that would raise the viewer's hair on end. All in all, the Gogavale brothers have pulled off an excellent musical ensemble.

This January, we got to witness a treat in all ways - visually, musically and by means of a scintillating storyline.

Let's Hope 2012 has more such delicacies to offer us.