Damadamm Music Review

Himesh Reshammiya has a tendency to divide listeners into the love him or hate him camp with that distinctive voice of his – so if you already know you’re not a big fan of Himesh and his characteristic nasal delivery, you might be wise to steer clear of the super-sized Damadamm soundtrack, since Himesh provides vocals for every one of the 15 tracks (9 originals, 5 remixes and a “promo video track”) on the epic album. Luckily, I love Himesh, and I even love him when he goes fully nasal, so 15 tracks? NO PROBLEM!
Opener Damadamm starts out like a traditional Sufi qawali… for about 2 seconds, until a deliciously addictive disco beat kicks in and the tune is transformed into an infectiously upbeat disco-qawali.  With a veritable truckload of vocalists: Punnu Brar, Palak Muchhal, Shabab Sabri, Alam Gir Khan, Sabina Shaikh, Himesh Reshammiya, Vineet Singh and Rubina Shaikh – all contributing, the song has a likeable, anthemic vibe centred around a familiar refrain: “Damadam Mast Kalandar!”; and enough variety in the lyrical delivery to keep it from getting too monotonous. On the downside,  it IS nearly 6 minutes long, and perhaps lacks enough innovation in the composition to keep it truly interesting after a certain point. There’s also a Damadamm Remix, which just adds synths and boosts beats and isn’t a huge improvement on what is already an enjoyable,  danceable track.
Umrao Jaan is a song that’s already making waves. It’s impossible to ignore Purbi Joshi’s repeated refrain (in an exaggerated faux Far-Eastern accent) “No Touching, Only Seeing. No Kissing, Only Seeing” – and I’m really not a fan of gimmicky comedy songs (and this definitely is one). Himesh is also at his most nasal in this song (haters be warned) – but there’s something about the bhangra disco beats and layered instrumentation in the track  that keeps me from switching it off…and in fact, keeps me coming back for more. I can forgive it the annoying gimmicky chorus, is what I’m saying. (It’s been stuck in my head for days!)  The Umrao Jaan Remix adds electro effects into the mix and is probably the one I’ll end up replaying because it’s a little less grating.
The intense, romantic groove of Aaja Ve is up next. This track is given a pulsating, soft rock feel with sparing use of violin, guitar and hypnotic, heartbeat-like percussion, but the focus is really on Himesh’s emotive vocals. His fans will love it; everyone else should give this one a shot – it’s definitely one of the standouts of the album. The Aaja Ve Remix plays with the arrangement, boosting the dramatic dark rock feel of the track by increasing the violins and electric guitar in the mix, but throwing some extra beats in there for good luck.
Madhushala opens with Aditi Singh Sharma crooning seductive English lyrics of “Ishq Unplugged” (Damadamm‘s original title) before Himesh counters, the drums kick in and the track takes off . This is a really interesting song to listen to for what Himesh does with his vocal delivery – it’s like he alternates his delivery, singing in two different, very distinct voices, with Aditi Singh Sharma’s near ethereal contributions adding further contrast to this multi-layered track. The varied instrumentation and arrangement is a little bit classical and rustic, and maintains high energy throughout. If anything, the old school vibe is reminiscent of ‘Isq Risk’ from the recent Mere Brother Ki Dulhan soundtrack. A definite winner. One of my favourites on the album. It was obviously picked as a popular track because there are two remixes included: Madhushala Remix and Madhushala House Mix. Neither adds much to the song.
Yun Toh Mera Dil is a breezy, poppy love song that evokes summer and beaches and sunshine and just…happiness. Based around lazy strumming guitars and handclaps, the tone of Himesh’s voice is pleasant and low for much of this song – making it a sweet, soothing, cute little song. When he emotes, his voice sounds like it’s soaring, not straining, and definitely not nasal or grating. Some might think it cheesy, but I actually like the little chuckles  and “cuckoos” thrown in as flourishes. Sadhana Sargam makes a very brief appearance in the song, and echoes the “chuckle” flourish on her vocal delivery – it’s really cute.
If you’re a fan of love ballads like I am, then you’ll probably enjoy Hum Tum. This is a gorgeously tender track, in which Himesh basically gives the people exactly what they expect. Himesh’s delivery is restrained and soft, the melody is pretty, with luscious instrumentation and my favourite romantic soaring strings, and Vaishali Made adds a beautiful classical touch with her vocal contributions throughout the song.
Another gorgeous ballad follows in the form of Tere Bina, a showcase for Himesh’s soulful vocals in an emotive and dynamic love song. Everything I said about Hum Tum holds true for this one, except this one is more plaintive in emotional tone – it’s a classic ballad and it’s done well.
I Need My Space has yet another style of vocal delivery from Himesh, who almost sounds like he’s channelling Vishal (of Vishal-Shekhar) in his heavy rock growling in the opening of the song. It’s a pretty standard rock song – grinding guitars, pounding drums, anthemic chorus. It”s not an especially original or new sounding song (and in fact, parts of it sound really familiar in a way I just can’t pin down) – the novelty is in hearing Himesh tackle a song in a new (for him) genre with unexpected aggression.
I hate to admit it, but I am in LOVE with Mango – the love song that infamously compares a woman to a mango. It’s come under fire for its incredibly simple lyrics (by Sameer) – “I miss you baby, like mango/ Tere intezar mein, na apples na tango, just mango”. It might be my love of love songs, or it might be that say what you will about Himesh – he can write and arrange a good melody, and Mango certainly has a beautiful, deceptively simple arrangement that gets right under your skin. Aditi Singh Sharma’s strong vocals contributions to the song are awesome too in that she sounds so different to elsewhere on the album. Forget ethereal – the woman is a powerhouse.
Final track on the album is “promo video track” Bhool Jaaun – and Sachin Gupta ( gets a turn at the vocals! Heavily atmospheric and rock-influenced, what makes this track stand out is the underlying beat and the fact that Sachin Gupta handles the lead vocals, with Himesh supporting.
Damadamm is a bit of a mixed bag – but it’s actually quite nice to hear Himesh experimenting with his vocal delivery and branching out a little with genre. I can’t help but think though that a little bit of variety in lead vocalists would make the album a bit more interesting to listen to as well. I love Himesh…but 15 tracks is a lot of Himesh.
Overall though Damadamm is a decent listen with mostly solid tracks, and a couple of stellar ones. Skip the remixes unless you’re a super-fan.

Why We Think Shahid Rocks!

Shahid Kapoor’s career, though still relatively young in the scheme of things, has shown the actor in an incredible range of roles and genres. With each new film he has grown as an actor and has proven himself to be one of the best in Bollywood. Coming up this Friday is the love story Mausam, which also stars Sonam Kapoor. Directed by his father Pankaj Kapoor, the actor dedicated all of his time over a period of two years, to make it a film that he hopes will blow audiences away. Since we think Shahid rocks, we thought we would take a look at some of the pivotal and best moments in the actor’s career!

Ishq Vishk: Of course his debut film has to be mentioned. He burst on the scene with that adorable baby face and fabulous screen presence. He did a great job as a newcomer and though in some scenes his acting skills were still raw, there were some really great moments. The cute chemistry between him and Amrita Rao also made the film feel real, young and it was just to good. Ishq Vishk was a movie that was like a breath of fresh air and audiences loved it. His performance won him the coveted Filmfare Best Male Debut Award.

Fida: With his second role, Shahid proved that he was not going to be content being typecast as the cute young college guy. It was a complete 180 from Rajiv, and fans and critics were stunned at his transformation. He proved he was an actor to look out for in the future.

Shikhar: This is another role that showed he wanted to stretch as an actor. His performance is a favorites for one of our writers: “I loved Shahid in Shikhar. He portrayed his character, Jai, so well, going from an innocent boy to a guy lost in the world of money and ambition.” His performance was critically praised and it earned him a Star Screen Award for Best Actor nomination.

Vivah: Once again Shahid was paired with Amrita Rao, but this was a different time, a different story, and a completely different actor. Vivah is a beautiful yet simple film full of emotion and romance. Shahid proved he could be quiet and still make audiences literally feel his emotion coming off the screen. The scene in the hospital when he marries her and puts on her sindoor (sighhhh) is one of the best moments in the film. Vivah ranks as one of his finest and most nuanced performances and definitely one of our favorites. Fans and critics agree and Vivah went on to be one of his biggest hits.

Jab We Met: Of course this HAS to be on the list. It is on almost every Bollywood fans list of “Movies I Love” and “Bollywood movies everyone should see”. Starring Kareena Kapoor and Shahid, the two were a perfect foil for each other. Shahid was pitch perfect both as the depressed, lost Aditya who slowly comes to life in the presence of Kareena Kapoor’s Geet to the one who has to bring life and happiness back to her all the while concealing his love. Each moment was done with a delicate touch, full of emotion, energy and light that proved that Shahid as an actor had come into his own. He made every girl fell in love with him…all over again!

Kaminey: Once again he changed it up and went in a new direction, this time taking on two roles in the Vishal Bhardwaj directed dark drama. The dexterity with which he played both characters is worth a mention and then some. We gave it 4 stars and our reviewer raved about Shahid’s performance, “Shahid Kapoor has found himself in the role of a lifetime. You’ve seen him as the lost Aditya Kashyap in Jab We Met and then the shy Prem in Vivah and while he has been incredible in both roles, his portrayal of Charlie and Guddu is his best till date. While he’s mean as Charlie, he’s totally cute as Guddu. And the amount of work it must have taken to swap between stuttering and stammering is only imaginable and is visible on screen. The distinction between both brothers is clear and Shahid comes out a complete winner.” Need we say more?
A couple of special mentions: Though not a success at the box office we do feel that Shahid was really good in Dil Bole Hadippa. He played his role perfectly and his chemistry with Rani was fabulous. Did the film work? Well, not really but Shahid certainly did!
Then there is his dancing, which has to get its own special recognition. He started out as a dancer in the industry and his first big screen time was as a backup dancer in Taal. He has got the moves that puts many a Bollywood hero to shame and he is considered one of the best! Though Chance Pe Dance was not a hit, his dancing was and it showed off his incredible skill. We do love to watch that man move!
Time will tell if his performance in Mausam will rate good enough to make it on our list but we have a feeling it will be! The romance hits theaters on September 23rd!

Bollywood injured!

It seems Bollywood has become a dangerous place. Well, on set that is because recently several Bollywood stars have injured themselves while shooting stunts for their upcoming movies.
Most recently Amitabh Bachchan suffered from a minor injury whilst shooting for the film Department. The actor took to twitter to share the news with fans tweeting, “A minor incident on set during semi action sequence.. got hit on chest rib cage, some damage inside, pain on breathing, bearable!”
The star went on to assure fans it is nothing serious tweeting, “Okaay I seem to have let loose a cannon!! It will heal.. do not worry .. all shall be well ..”
Seems it is a little worse than he thought, “since the chest rib pain persisted the Doc insisted I have a CT Scan done ..did it and ..yes its a hairline fracture in the rib. For fractures in the rib nothing can be done as treatment .. suffer the pain for another 3-4 weeks .. it heals on its own ..damn !!” Ever the optimist he then wrote, “But the brighter side is that shot for ‘Department’ and it was a song and dance sequence ..went off quite smoothly without incident!”
Rana Daggubati injured his knee whilst shooting a stunt for the film Department. After a weeks rest the star is back on sets and has restarted shooting for his second Bollywood movie. Rana took to twitter to confirm the news to fans tweeting, “For all who ask, my knees are much better, actually started shooting for some semi-action portions in the film today.”
Abhishek Bachchan also met with an incident whilst filming a sequence for his upcoming film Bol Bachchan. Abhishek shared the news about his incident with fans tweeting, “Had a fall whilst filming a small action sequence in Jaipur. Have come back to Mumbai now and will resume work at the earliest.”
The actor recently shared the news of his recovery with fans tweeting, “The cut heals and the stitches have been removed. All due to the wishes and prayers of all of you. THANK YOU!”
Vivek Oberoi also took to twitter to assure fans that his injury on sets was nothing to worry about. The star, who recently injured his back whilst shooting for the movie Zilla Ghaziabad, tweeted, “Thank u adorable tweeple for all the love & duas! It was only a lil accident, nothing to worry abt. A day’s rest and I’m back shooting! ”
Shreyas Talpade was another actor to injure his back whilst shooting for the film Joker. The actor however didn’t let his injury stop him from working as he told the media that he ‘returned to shoot’ the very next day.