Instrumental tunes save 'Joker' soundtrack

Film: "Joker"; Music Directors: G.V. Prakash Kumar and Gaurav Dagaonkar; Lyricist: Shirish Kunder; Singers: Sunidhi Chauhan, Adarsh Shinde, Udit Narayan, Daler Mehndi, Sonu Kakkar and Shweta Pandit; Rating: **1/2

"Joker" marks the first Bollywood outing for music maestro A.R. Rahman's nephew G.V. Prakash Kumar. He has composed five tracks in the album, and one song is composed by Gaurav Dagaonkar. All songs have been penned by the movie's director, Shirish Kunder.

The album gets a jump-start with "Kafirana (I want fakht you)". Composed by Dagaonkar, the item number, which has Chitrangda Singh giving a rare glimpse of her dance moves, has a lot of dhol beats and a catchy tune. The lyrics are a mix of Hinglish (Hindi and English) and Marathi, and givingthem voice are Sunidhi Chauhan and Adarsh Shinde. They have done justice to this peppy composition.

Next on the playlist is "Jugnu". Crooned by Udit Narayan, it ends up reminding the listener of his song "Yeh taara woh taara" fom "Swades". However, if the two are compared, the composition of "Jugni" is quite ordinary, and it fails to make an impact. Narayan has maintained his charm with the vocals and has been supported well by chorus and whistling. Good for a one-time listen, but nothing beyond that.

The next number "Sing raja", folk has been mixed well with electronic sounds. Singers Daler Mehndi and Sonu Kakkar allure the listener with their energetic vocals, which blend well. They repeat the term "Nach Le" in many languages during the song, but a high point in this song is a flute loop. Overall, the number fails miserably in the lyrics department, but this composition by G.V. Prakash is definitely engaging.

It is followed by "Yeh Joker", another peppy number in syncwith the mood set by "Kafirana", but nowhere close to it in terms of enjoyment. It is heavily dependent on Sonu Nigam's musical might, but even he fails to make it pleasant. Singer Shweta Pandit and the chorus too are a drag. The track is vigorous during certain intervals but is unable to take off fully thanks to the run-of-the-mill lyrics.

There is a ray of hope with "Tears of Joker" and it delivers with its depressing, yet appealing sound. The flute has been used brilliantly along with the tabla and sitar. With this one, one finally gets a taste of the musical capabilities of G.V. Prakash. This one is a clear winner and the best track of the album.

The album rounds off with another instrumental "Alien arrival". The saxophone is just enchanting and there are some fine beats used in its build up. It would be interesting to watch how it is interspersed in the movie as the sound of it suggests it should have a lot of visual appeal.

Overall, the album is a good mix of sounds, but it fails in terms of lyrics. Go for it purely for the instrumental tracks.