Music Review: Rustom

The album boasts of six originals and three reprises. Most of the numbers are slow paced, some of which are not exactly out of the box and do sound repetitive in places. A few songs are beautifully composed and sung by some of the most notable names in the industry.

The album opens with the song "Tere Sang Yaara", a teaser of which was released earlier in the month. Sung by Atif Aslam, this song manages to bowl over the listeners by its soulfulness. The song seems to follow the trend of all of Kumar's recent movies by being the standard romantic number ("Shayarana" from Holiday (2014), "Main Tumse Pyaar Nahi Karta" from Baby (2015) and Airlift (2016) featuring "Soch Na Sake"). The melody is heartfelt and the song has a certain wistful feel to it. The reprise version sung by composer Mukherjee himself, lacks a certain charm Atif originally lent and is a sadder version of the original.

"Tere Sang Yaara" is followed by the more upbeat and livelier "Rustom Vahi". Sung by Sukriti Kakkar and composed by Raghav Sachar, this song is made by keeping the protagonist Rustom in mind. Kakkar seems to be the next promising upcoming vocalist, with hits like "Kar Gayi Chull" already to her credit. The song, although pleasing to hear, fails to hold the listener's interest after a while. There is also a Theme version, an additional Marathi version and a Male version, sung by Jasraj Joshi in the album, not adding much to the original track, except a few changes in the pitch and lyrics. 

"Tay Hai" is the third song in the album and is composed and voiced by the talented Ankit Tiwari. The song does not stray from Tiwari's previous works, with a melodious start and an increase in tempo as the song progresses. The musical arrangements are subservient, letting Tiwari's voice overpower. The violin solo between the verses is beautiful, leaving the listeners wanting for more after the end.

 

Arijit Singh opens the next song, "Dekha Hazaro Dafaa" and is accompanied by Palak Muchhal's beautiful voice. This song is a certified hit with some wonderful lyrics and appeasing vocals. It is equally playful and romantic, making it a perfect ballroom dance number. Composed by Gannguli, this song, like "Tay Hai'', has kept the instrumentals to a minimum, allowing the singers to take over and transport the listeners to a dreamy world.

Following "Dekha Hazaro Dafaa" is "Dhal Jaun Main", a Gannguli composition that is sung by Jubin Nautiyal and Aakanksha Sharma. Nautiyal has worked wonders with this track, despite being one of the most underrated artists in the music industry. This song is sure to bring his name forth to the limelight. However, the song seems to be a bit on the repetitive side, having the likeness of other romantic tracks. Unfortunately, this one fell a little flat and failed to bring variety to the plate.

Shreya Ghoshal's pacifying voice follows next, singing "Jab Tum Hote Ho." Composed by Tiwari, this song too, lacks originality. The instrumental solo reminds us of ''Tum Hi Ho" from Aashiqui 2 (2013). This song is a let-down, and unlike "Dhal Jaun Main", fails to grow upon you.

Writer: Sanika S.

Editors: Anushka J. and Gunia K.

Graphics: Harjot K.