When you have a film called Shandaar, you expect the title to match the music as well.
So have composer Amit Trivedi and lyricist Amitabh Bhattacharya done the needful?
It starts off well, with Vishal Dadlani and Anusha Mani behind the mike for Gulaabo. The song is already making its presence felt online as well as on the satellite music channels. This song does not focus on the film's lead couple, Shahid Kapoor and Alia Bhatt. Instead, it is about the third character, Gulabo.
It's a naughty number where the protagonists and their friends are having fun. A decent start.
Shaam Shaandaar is the quintessential Shahid Kapoor number, fast-paced and engaging right through. Amit Trivedi turns singer here.
Nazdeekiyaan is a romantic number but it does not touch you. It stays plain and simple throughout its 200 odd second duration even as Nikhil Paul George and Neeti Mohan make an attempt to infuse some life in it.
For those who like their music to be offbeat despite a commercial setting like Shandaar, this one is a decent offering.
Back in the 1960s and till the mid-70s, it was pretty much a ritual to include a jugalbandi qawalli involving the hero and the heroine. The same is attempted by Amit and Amitabh with Senti Wali Mental that tries to be funny and mischievous.
Expect this one to have a Hum Aapke Hain Koun...! kind of a family setting where Shahid, Alia and their friends pull each others' leg.
However, considering the fact that this Hinglish number by Arijit Singh, Neeti Mohan, Swanand Kirkire and Amit Trivedi spans close to nine minutes, one waits to see how the interest is retained in the proceedings.
Raitaa Phailgaya is a little more interesting, as Divya Kumar gets lively behind the mike. With a North Indian setting to it, this one is about getting drunk and making merry, albeit not really in Yo Yo Honey Singh or Badshah style. This means that instead of rap, it is the folk flavour that is adopted for this situational number that at least manages to hold your attention while it plays.
Overall though, the music of Shandaar is not quite 'shandaar', though it gets some points for experimentation.
Rediff Rating: