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Ek Paheli Leela has been co-produced by music label T-Series whose last production ‘Roy’ boasted of some extremely popular tracks. Having Sunny Leone in the lead, the makers bring an array of composers to produce ‘hit music’.
“Desi Look”, composed by Dr. Zeus, reminds one of “Lovely” (Happy New Year) from the first note itself. Incidentally, Dr. Zeus had composed the Happy New Year track with Vishal-Shekhar and going by the way this song sounds, he seems to be suffering from creative fatigue. Kanika Kapoor, who rendered “Lovely”, sings this one as well and that adds to the over-familiarity of the tune. Kumaar should reinvent his style of writing dance numbers. For how long will he keep mixing Hindi, English and Punjabi words in order to sound trendy? Phrases like ‘Meri Desi Look Pe Mar Gaye Gore Gore Chhore’ and ‘Mera Sona Sa Mukhda Hai Moon Ka Tukda‘ are hardly innovative.
Pop singer-composer Uzair Jaswal had released his song “Tere Bin Nahin Laage” in 2010. The song has been re-created (in terms of arrangements and production) by Amaal Mallik for the film. The original was exactly the kind of Hindi pop song that you expect to hear these days – a simple tune, over simplistic lyrics and a singer singing in an anglicized accent. The new version, by Amaal, is thankfully more refined. It has a slightly filmy sound with some interesting arrangements consisting of both Western and Indian instruments. The additional lyrics, by Kumaar, are good. The female version starts with Aishwarya Majumdar singing a few semi classical, Rajasthani folk based lines which sound very pleasant. Then, Tulsi Kumar makes an entry and that’s where the trouble starts. Tulsi’s voice does not suit the song at all and her rendition is not too impressive either.
Amaal Mallik composes “Saiyaan Superstar”, a dance number that reminds one of similar songs from the 90s. The music is average and the song could have worked as an advertising jingle but it is difficult to listen to it for four minutes! Tulsi Kumar is the only singer credited here but one feels as if there are three female singers. Too many digital additions to Tulsi’s voice make her sound gimmicky.
Tony Kakkar, who had written and composed “Saawan Aaya Hai” for Creature 3D, brings in a genuine wordsmith (Manoj Muntashir) to write the lyrics for this assignment. It has to be mentioned that her lyrics were the weakest part of the track. “Khuda Bhi” is a highly melodious composition ably supported by some terrific lyrics by Manoj Muntashir. The arrangements consist of some good guitar, piano, tabla and flute pieces. Mohit Chauhan seems the apt choice for this song.
Meet Bros Anjjan try some experimentation with “Glamorous Ankhiyaan” as they create an interesting fusion of Indian and Western sounds in the song. The track is unlike what the composers have come up with earlier. Krishna Beura’s earthy voice well for the song. Kumaar’s lyrics are decent but the phrase “Glamorous Ankhiyaan” comes across as very distracting and seems out of place with the rest of the phrases. As mentioned earlier, the lyricist is in dire need of a reinvention.
“Deewana Tera” – the very popular Sonu Nigam number from his 1999 album ‘Deewana’ has been recreated as “Main Hoon Deewana Tera”. However, it’s Arijit Singh who gets behind the mike here. Meet Bros Anjjan retain the original hook line composed by Sajid-Wajid and create their own composition around it. And, they do a very good job at it. The song has a trance feel to it and the original piece and the new tune come together effortlessly.
The composer trio completes a hat trick with “Dhol Baaje” (another recreation). No prizes for guessing which song they recreate here. It’s the one from Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam. Meet Bros Anjjan’s music is decent and unlike the previous track, their tune does not seem to fit in as well with the original track. Monali Thakur sings the song beautifully.
Tony Kakkar who is credted as the music composer and lyricist with with “Ek Do Teen Chaar”, gets into Yo Yo Honey Singh’s mode with this number. Interestingly, Neha Kakkar, who sings this song, has collaborated with Honey Singh on some of his last tracks such as “Sunny Sunny” (Yaariyan) and “Manali Trance” (The Shaukeens). Even though Neha displays a lot of spunk in her singing, there is absolutely nothing that deserves a mention here. This dance number sounds too common place to make an impact.
The music of Ek Paheli Leela is a mixed bag with some songs making an impact while some turning out to be forgettable. The makers have tried to play it safe and have filled the album with songs that would sound trendy or become hits. T-Series should try to bring in a fresh sound with the music of their films; something which they have not done since a long time.
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