Film: "Damarukam";
Music Composer: Devi Sri Prasad;
Lyricists: Chandra
Bose, Ramajogayya Sastry and Sahiti;
Singers: M.L.R. Karthikeyan,
Shankar Mahadevan, Jaspreet Jazz, Sunitha, Gopika Poornima, Sri Krishna,
Harini, Venkat Sai, Karthik, Hariharan, Myriad Pro, Suchith Suresan and
Mamta Sharma;
Rating: *** Devi Sri Prasad's 50th album is unique
from his usual run-of-the-mill compositions, but not his best. As a fan
of the composer, the listener will be satisfied, but as a music lover,
one doubts if this album would live up to listeners' expectations.
There
are 10 songs in the album, sung by as many as 13 singers. The album has
good mix of melody and folk numbers.
Shankar Mahadevan leads the list
with two tracks to his credit, while the other singers have one song
each.
"Bhoonabhontaalake", the first song of the album, sounds
like a religious offering to lord Shiva. The recurring 'Shankara' word
in the track, sung well by M.L.R. Karthikeyan, adds a nice ring to the
song. It is intelligently mixed with the sound of 'damru', almost
playing from the beginning to the end of the song.
The second
number, "Dheemtana" by
Shankar Mahadevan, is a slow, god-pleasing number
that may attract attention with visuals, but it isn't as appealing as
one hears it. It's a passable track with a pleasant mix of tabla or dhol
and occasional damru.
"Kanyakumari" is the kind of number you
ought to hear from Devi. Aptly sung by Jaspreet Jazz and Sunitha, this
song will woo with its lyrics and may qualify as the best duet in the
film. Devi perhaps composed this song keeping
Baba Sehgal in mind
because Jaspreet sounds so much like Baba, that you can easily be
tricked if you're listening to it for the first time.
A song that
could almost put you to sleep is "Laali laali" by Gopika Poornima. Devi
recounts this number as his best ever composition and I couldn't agree
more with him. The rhythmic soul of this song sweeps you off your feet.
The unparalleled collaboration of Devi, Gopika and lyricist Chandrabose
make this song special with its brilliant composition.
"Nesthama
nesthama" is yet another duet from the album that deserves to be heard
on loop. The first few lines of the song display Devi's ability to play
with strings, which he doesn't show quite often. The voices of Sri
Krishna and Harini serve as a perfect icing on the cake.
The next
two songs from the album, "Omkaram srusthi" and "Pancha graha kootam"
will drag you into the pious mood of the film. These songs are proof to
the heavy use of damru throughout the album. Both the songs have some
inspiring Sanskrit lines and are equally well sung by Venkat Sai and
Karthik, respectively.
The next track in the album, "Reppalapai",
crooned by Hariharan and Myriad Pro are reminiscent of archaic duet
numbers. No matter how many times you listen to this track, it only
graduates as a song of the 1980s and 1990s, but fails to make an impact.
The constant use of variety of dhols throughout will quickly lead to
the conclusion that the composer didn't innovate with the music.
Charmi
Kaur shakes a leg to this number on screen with
Nagarjuna, and it's
sure to draw lots of eyeballs, but unfortunately "Sakku Bhai" crooned by
Mamta Sharma is not even close to "Kevvu keka" from "Gabbar Singh".
Although Devi's pick of instruments transform this ordinary number into a
memorable, hummable piece of music, but the song is still as senseless
as it can get.
Someone once said wisely - patience is virtue. You
have to listen to nine tracks to enjoy this gem called "Shiv shiva" by
Shankar Mahadevan. You don't need time to let this song sink in because
it does the very first time you listen to it. This is the fourth number
in the album dedicated to lord Shiva, and as the title suggests, there's
so much of damru to look forward to.
© IANS 
