Music Review: ‘Yeh Hai Bakrapur’

The music for a satirical film, in Hindi cinema at least, is a bit of a strange proposition. On one hand, there are songs with dark comic edges, a kind of musical-social commentary. And there are the romantic, breezy numbers as well that are accommodated by the musically liberal format of our films. I can think of the gently melodious Meetha marz from Welcome to Sajjanpur composed by Shantanu Moitra among the best from this genre of films, although it could have found a place in just about any Hindi film album.Agnee’s Pyaar mein bakra from Yeh Hai Bakrapur is made of similar innocence and sweetness, but it also gives a spin to the movie’s theme, incorporating elements of irony in verses such as Zero balance pe bhi dil ki baatein ho sakti hai…. It’s an interesting mix that harks back to the soft rock-pop side of the band — pleasant guitar strumming, the straight, antara-mukhada-antara format — with K Mohan’s vocals lending all the rawness required.

It’s the kind of song that will grow over a number of listens but I am afraid, will still fall short of the recall value of a song like Shaam tanha or Kehlene do, years after they were made. In Om shanti om, Agnee attempts a Shah Rukh Khan homage. The idea of shuttling between a bhajan and a qawwali may be good, but it sounds too worn out. It lacks the freshness that we have come to associate with Agnee, weighed down by the the contrivances of stringing together the lyrics with SRK’s film titles — that isn’t a very novel approach anyway. And with each of its lines laced with dark humour — written by Abbas Tyrewala — comes Pair anaadi, but it has the same problem as Om shanti om. The arrangement, inventive use of instruments are all there, but the central melody lacks a punch. I missed the excellent marriage of music and lyrics in a song of similar spirit — Indian Ocean’s Des mera, re-arranged and used in Peepli [Live]. Only its hook, with a hint of Agnee’s folksy mysticism stays with you. Yeh Hai Bakrapur is not bad by any stretch, but it is disappointing and unremarkable given Agnee’s capability of blending pop and soulfulness, two of the things that help in making great film music.