Actor Madhavan seems to be in for a spot of clover: he's a part of the remake of Hindi's Yes Boss which is morphing into the Tamil Guru En Aalu, produced by KRG Movies International and directed by Selvah.
Tuned by Srikanth Deva, the album promises quite a lot of commercial fare. Take a look:
Alaipayudhey begins in strains that remind you strangely of Oorvasi of Kadhalan fame; thumping with Arabic music, rendered by Karthik, Nrithya, Ranjith and Swetha. And then it morphs to standard kuthu music, interspersed very liberally with more Arabic notes. Pa Vijay's lyrics are suitably front-bench material. Even these sound as if you've heard them before.
Chellame Chellame (which seems to be the catch-phrase again, these days) begins with notes that remind you of En Swasakatre's Chillalava in a slow pace. Udit Narayan's nasal voice runs the usual way -- the tune meanders from angsty to cheerful in this once-again oft-heard number. Deja vu stems from the tunes of Pardes. There's hardly any originality in it.
Kabilan's Kadhal Kannadiyil is a rehash of the original's Ek Din Aap, a rather old-fashioned melody sung by Prasanna Rao and Sadhana Sargam. With veena interludes that sound like the Vicco Vajradanti ad, this one is for those who are in love with Hindi music from the late eighties and early nineties.
Musical swaras begin Raqeeb's Kadhal Kolagalam, a sort of qawwali, albeit in Tamil and though it sticks to its genre, it does take us back a good twenty to thirty years back. Presumably, this is the theme song of sorts. The instruments and general rhythm are so very lacklustre that you can't help but yawn. It sounds like some wedding reception fare with average acoustics.
Vaanam Vandhu in Pa Vijay's words and sung by Krish takes a would-be enthusiastic opening. It's not really scintillating after the first few moments. Krish's fluid voice is some consolation. He handles the tune well. An oft-heard melody.
Benny Dhayal's characteristic rap begins Veesuvadhu, penned by Palani Bharathi. The number proceeds at a peppy, enthusiastic pace, though the tune meanders. Still, he seems to have made a valiant effort at maintaining his pace.
All through the album, you're confronted with already-heard moments when the melody takes predictable turns. There's a dated feel to the collection, showing, probably, how well Srikanth Deva has channelled the original and its aura.
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