Shootout At Lokhandwala

Article Updated 17 May, 2007 09:43:46 PM IST

Shootout At Lokhandwala

Sanjay Gupta movies have always boasted of classy and commercially successful music, be it 'Kaante', Musafir' or 'Zinda'. Now that he joins hands with Shobha and Ekta Kapoor, who are also known for providing chartbusters in their previous projects, expectations assume mammoth proportions. This is especially true, seeing the top quality music directors like the Pakistani rock band Strings, the very famous Indian rockish-pop group Euphoria, the 'Aap Jaisa Koi' fame Biddu, Anand Raaj Anand and of course Mika, who is a Punjabi pop star in his own right. So, without wasting much time let's see what these very capable music directors have to offer us music lovers.

The promos of this raunchy, extremely rhythmic bar dance track 'Mere Yaar', shows a similar picturisation to 'Omkara's 'Beedi' with Vivek and Tusshar in full "masti". So let's see if this track will be able to ignite the 'Beedi' magic. The extremely talented composer Anand Raaj Anand, who also doubles up as a singer here, has done fabulously, both as an arranger and as a singer. The real queen of item numbers Sunidhi Chauhan is back, and like in 'Beedi' she is sensuous and classy, her diction perfect, her rendition superb. The lyricist Dev Kohli, who used to rule the roost in the 90s is back and he too deserves all the praise for providing the lyrics, which are raunchy but not cheap. Sample the opening couplet, "Sun o mere raanjheya, Ye preet badi dukhdayi, Ismein kharcha jaan ka, Aur gham ki mile kamayee." Some profound thoughts aren't they? So this number has all it takes to reach the top and will definitely hit the right target.

Some lovely piano notes and Bilal's soft, heart touching vocals commence 'Aakhri Alvida'. A beautiful guitar piece with drums and plates in the midst, along with the String duo's crescendo singing as they go "Yeh aakhri alvida na ho", is absolutely mindblasting. This unique method of a gradual build up of the crescendo is very typical of the band. Remember their hit 'Sar kiye ye pahad'? Anwar Maqsood's lyrics are hard hitting and in keeping with the mood of the movie. His lyrics go -"Dhadkanein khamosh hain, Kuch kahti nahin, Ye aakhri alvida na ho, Chahtein aakhon se bahti nahin, Ye aakhri alvida na ho." This composition has been used as a promotional video, featuring the band and the lead artists. Their loyal fans, as well as those with a taste for good music will surely savour this delicacy.

'Aakhri Alvida - Club Mix', is a superb job done by DJ Naved and Nikhil Chinappa. They have succeeded in converting this gem of an original into a good club number.

Music Director Biddu is known to the present generation only for his still rocking 'Aap Jaisa Koi' ('Qurbani'), picturised on the sultry siren Zeenat and the very dashing Firoz Khan. This time he is back, not only as a composer but as a singer too in 'Live By The Gun', which appears twice in this album. The second one is much the same and just a space-filler. A very hard-hitting, appropriate, situational track, which gels well with the gangster theme of movie. An all English, true blue style number, with the "smack-in-your face" lyrics, and Biddu's extremely base voice conveying the message clear and sharp - Crime never pays!

"Unke nashe mein chalte rahe, Ladkhadaye kabhie, Kabhie samhalte rahe". This song by Anand Raaj Anand has all three Punjabi munde - Sukhwinder Singh, Mika and the composer himself, Anand Raaj Anand, singing superbly in tandem, complementing each other in perfect harmony. Mika is not too nasal and sings naturally. Hats off to Sanjay Gupta for some lovely lyrics. This is a very sweet dance track, very rhythmic. Once again, a superb number by Anand Raaj Anand. It is sad that this extremely versatile and talented composer did not get his due even after providing chartbuster albums like 'Kaante' and 'Pardesi Babu'.

After doing a superb job with 'Aakhri Alvida', 'Unke Nashe Mein - Club Mix' is the second song that DJ Naved and Nikhil Chinappa have remixed to perfection.

Next up is 'Sone De Maa', by Euphoria, one of India's most popular and renowned rock bands. Another situational tear-jerker, slow paced composition. Dr. Palash Sen, Euphoria's lead singer excels both as a singer and as a lyricist(though supported well by Deekshant Sherawat). But one must add here, we expected better work from them.

As the promos of 'Ganpat' were aired on TV, with all the four baddies, Tusshar, Vivek, Shabbir and Rohit Roy swinging to cute dance steps, this track appeared to be another lovable "tapori" number, in perfect "bhai" lingo, reminiscent of 'Kallu Mama' from 'Satya' and 'Aslam Bhai' ('Love ke Liye Kuch Bhi Karega'). But alas, the cute song is totally spoiled by Mika's lyrics, which get too crude and crass for comfort.

More shock is in store in the form of 'Ganpat Rap', as indecent references to top Bollywood stars(though names twisted) is absolutely disgusting and leave a bad taste in the mouth. There was just no need to spoil this classy album. With top names like Sanjay Dutt, Sanjay Gupta, Shobha and Ekta Kapoor and the Bachchans associated with this, we wonder why they did not put a foot down to such obscene lyrics. Maybe they were unaware.

On the whole, the audio of 'Shootout At Lokhandwala' will have a dominant but short reign on the charts and it will be boosted further by the predictable good opening of the movie on May 25th. Go for it because it is just not about "tapori" or item numbers. In fact, it has quite a few good names associated with it, and they give it their best.

Rating: 7.5/10

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