Music Review of U, Me Aur Hum

Article Updated 18 February, 2008 10:37:09 PM IST

Music Review of U, Me Aur Hum

Its time again for the lovers of classy (not classical) and quality music to sit up and take notice, as the versatile genius, Vishal Bhardwaj is back to rule our hearts and the charts through his music. That too in an out and out romantic and commercial venture, which is quite unlike the previous movies that he has composed for (Maachis, Maqbool, Omkara, No Smoking and The Blue Umbrella). The reason being that this album gives him ample scope to showcase his hitherto untapped musical potential.

All credit to Ajay Devgan for providing him with the opportunity and showing faith in his Omkara director, Vishal's musical capabilities. And why not? Even in dark, foreboding and macabre (though cinematically brilliant) films like Maqbool and Omkara, Vishal showed to the world that composing music is just not a hobby, but a passion, as is film making. His 'Beedi' is still highly popular and can be heard in all dance shows and parties. So with a whole lot of expectations let us check out the highly anticipated U, Me Aur Hum album.

Latino (Spanish) influences pervade the atmosphere with nice heel clicking sounds, accompanied by some passionate Spanish/Italian singing (a throwback to the Bachchan oldie 'Do Lafzon Ki Hai' from The Great Gambler) heralds the delightfully romantic 'Jee Le'. It is a superbly composed dance track (Salsa like) that has such an infectious, rollicking rhythm that it can persuade even a person with two left feet to jive. A lovely start, then the rhythm picks up pace smoothly, reaching an amazing crescendo, with some lovely single string guitar strumming and a violin piece is absolutely mind-blowing.

Adnan is simply mind-blasting, as he puts in all the effort and comes out trumps. The singer has disappointed of late, but it appears that it was the fault of the composers who made him to do same routine stuff. Whenever given something different he has always performed. Remember his philosophical 'Mera Jahaan' from Taare Zameen Par? But the weak link here is surprisingly Shreya Ghoshal, who puts in a professional performance, but appears ill at ease. Maybe a Sunidhi or any other singer with an English accent would have complemented Adnan's husky, slightly inebriated vocals, better. The lyricist Munna Dhiman deserves a mention for the lovey-dovey lyrics capable of immersing the die-hard romantics in their own dream world. "Jinko jinko bhi milna hai likha, Ishq milwayega, Door door se dhund dhund ke paas le aayega, Kahin bhi ja ke chhupo, Ishq wahin aayega, Kitna bhi na na karo, Utha ke le jayega, Mano ya na mano, Yeh saari hi duniya isi ke dam pe chale, Jee Le jee le. Fantastic writing! All these factors combine together make it an excellent number first up.

From one romantic number we move on to another one, 'Dil Dhadka Hai', not surprising, as this is a romantic movie. Adnan Sami and Shreya Ghoshal team up once again after the superb first number. This time Shreya is excellent, as the melody based track is Shreya's forte and the irrepressible Adnan is once again class apart. The musical arrangements complement the light melody with soft notes well, and there is not an iota of doubt that this number will definitely hit the charts. Munna Dhiman's lyrics are filmy, naturally the situation is such, but has been handled well, and he shows his hold over poetry through this nice love ballad.

The title track 'U, Me Aur Hum' has the Vishal Bhardwaj stamp written all over it. There are two versions of the song, one sung by Shreya Ghoshal and the other by the composer Vishal Bhardwaj himself. Vishal's heavy influence is evident with the rendition style of the lead singer, Shreya Ghoshal. It is a nice, simple, melodious track, which should be used as a background number, and no, it is not an English number. As a composer, Vishal proves his mettle yet again. Just the track which allows the listeners to get the feel of the movie.

We have heard Vishal a few times before. The latest that comes to mind is the No Smoking number, 'Kash Laga' where he was in the elite company of Sukhwinder Singh and Daler Mehndi. However this one has just Vishal, and we are bowled over by his sugary sweet, quite different from the usual vocals. It is a pleasure to have him render the title track, 'U, Me Aur Hum' with zest and passion. Not much change in the number here in terms of tune, but the minimum musical arrangement with just a hint of guitar in the background is a bonus, as Vishal vocals stand out loud and clear. Absolutely fantastic.

Light, mellifluous guitar strumming and a lovely, groovy synthesized rhythm (another off-shoot of the Bade Miyan Chhote Miyan 'Makhana' track?) gets one into the mood straight away with the next track 'Phatte'. This is a lively, light hearted "ched-chaad" cum propositioning number which is peppered with some lovely orchestral arrangements. The harmonious blending of drums, dhol, plates and the bhangra chants of "Oye, Oye" and of course the nice, smooth synthesized rhythm as the backdrop, all add up to a good "Funjabi" number. Quite a pleasant change from the usual Punjabi numbers based on same old, mundane Punjabi folk. Though even Vishal's antara has a slight resemblance to the Labh Janjua track 'Rabba Khair Kare' (Hattrick). Coming to the most important factor, the rendition of the song, the primary factor that makes this song a pleasant listening experience. Well, the song is rendered to perfection by the highly versatile singers, Adnan Sami and Sunidhi Chauhan. Both of them are top rate, as they emote splendidly and sing with ease which was the requirement in this lively, fun-filled track. At times it is difficult to imagine that it is the iconoclastic Vishal Bharawaj, who is the composer here, but he has taken to commercial style composing like a duck takes to water. Another example of his creative genius.

Another light hearted, situational track, 'Saiyaan' follows. The first average composition of the album, if we talk in terms of the tune, which is a let down, especially since it comes from Vishal. The tune is an extended version of the 'Koi Shehri Babu', incidentally the same tune has been used by Vishal-Shekhar in the popular title track of Salaam Namastey. But the best part about the song are its rib-tickling lyrics that make one roll with laughter. Well, is it Gulzar pairing up once again with his favourite composer, Vishal Bhardwaj? No, its Munna Dhiman, doing a marvelous take-off on the writing style of the genius. The similes that he chooses are very humorous, "Bareilly jaisa saiyaan, Paheli jaisa saiyaan," and this makes one wonder if Dhiman is trying to encash the real-life "miyan-biwi" jodi of Devgan and Kajol in reel life too. No harm whatsoever! It appears so, as Ajay's serious, aloof, brooding image (in real life) is brought to life perfectly through these lyrics. Sunidhi brings out the pleasant grouses and woes of a wife with her perfect rendition, and we are sure Kajol will do justice to the "hat ke" track. The song is a situational one that will serve as a spicy tension reliever, much on the same lines as, 'Main Kya Karoon Ram Mujhe Budhdha Mil Gaya' (Sangam). Though definitely not in the same league as the evergreen classic picturised on the original showman Raj Kapoor and eternal beauty Vyjayantimala.

To sum up, U, Me Aur Hum is a good album by Vishal, with a few excellent numbers and a couple of average ones. If it comes to choosing the Vishal of Omkara and Maachis or U, Me Aur Hum, its obvious that we will choose the former. As in the latter Vishal has compromised with his style to match the commercial feel of the movie. However, Vishal and the talented lyricist Munna Dhiman (who has penned some excellent lyrics and does not make one miss Gulzar Sahab much), deserve applause for the offering, whose outcome will depend largely on the success of the movie.

Rating: 7.5/10

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