Director : Kabir Khan
Music : Pritam
Lyrics : Amitabh Bhattacharya and Kauser Munir
Starring : Salman Khan, Zhu Zhu, Sohail Khan, Om Puri and Matin Rey Tangu
Expectations are of epic proportions from Kabir and Salman’s next movie TUBELIGHT, especially after two super duper (musical) hits, EK THA TIGER and BAJRANGI BHAIJAAN, both carrying chartbusting songs. With Pritam and Amitabh (along with Kausar Munir) at the helm of musical affairs, our expectations soar even higher.
The playlist commences with ‘Radio‘, which is a situational celebration number where the lead is overjoyed upon hearing good information through a radio, which was one of the few means of receiving news from overseas, during that time period (the war drama is set in the sixties). Sung with zest by Kamaal Khan with able support from Amit Mishra, the simple tune does hook and so do the apt arrangements (the lovely harmonica adds to the fun filled, joyous atmosphere).
Another number that carries the same joyous spirit as that of ‘Radio‘ is ‘Naach Meri Jaan‘, which is actually a song that celebrates the spirit of camaraderie between the two brothers who are not just siblings but soul mates. Kamaal Khan, Naksh Aziz, Dev Negi and Tushar Joshi render the number with lots of energy and vigour and once again it’s the simple tune with hilly folksy arrangements that is very addictive..
Easily the best song of the album, ‘Main Agar‘, is superb in all departments. Atif Aslam aces this number with an outstanding rendition. Full marks to the lyricist (Amitabh Bhattacharya) for some lovely lyrics that portray the state of mind of the lead with ease. Pritam’s grand orchestration lends class. A mass plus class fare that will surely prove to be chartbuster in the long run.
A sad separation number of a different kind, ‘Tinka Tinka Dil Mera‘, is situational song, wherein a differently abled brother pines for his sibling who is his mentor cum soul-mate. The song features twice in the album rendered by the one and only Rahat Fateh Ali Khan and Jubin Nautiyal. It’s an almost unplugged number where the vocals of the artists do the trick and both the versions make a strong impression. Grand background orchestrations with good use of oriental music makes this number a unique fare indeed which might take time to grow.
Summing up, the audio of TUBELIGHT stays true to the script and the songs are situational. Our picks are naturally ‘Radio‘ and ‘Main Agar‘, as also ‘Tinka Tinka Dil Mera‘. The narrative nature of the compositions might not make the album a an instant chartbusting fare like Kabir-Salman’s last two ventures (ETT and BB), but nonetheless, the songs will slowly but surely gain momentum, especially after the housefull opening of the film this Friday, all over.