AR Rahman scores again in Maidaan
I have spoken a lot recently about AR Rahman’s run-up to the current gold-run of film scores with the release and musical success of Aadujeevitham and Chamkila, so I will get straight to the point.
MAIDAAN is a rich score by the maestro that has verve, pizzaz, thump, poetry, mass, class and the signature X-factor. Imagine a full-course meal with a touch of street food and the heart and warmth of mom’s kitchen, and you get Maidaan, full of fiery-starters (Ranga Ranga), celebration shots (Team India Hain Hum), main course worth the long waiting time (Mirza, Dil Nahi Todenge) and a delectable dessert that lingers (Jaane Do).
Scoring great albums is something Rahman can do in his sleep, but what I always admire is how he gives us, within the constrains of a commercial project, music that is so deep, it educates us along the way and elevates our music-listening senses. Take Mirza, the typical Hindustani-qawwali template duet, which pushes the genre with vocal embellishments in latter half, or Jaane Do, which is constructed so delicately and executed so eloquently, one can listen to it a 100 times and yet not fully decipher its beauty.
MIRZA
Richa Sharma, Javed Ali
It is amazing that AR Rahman’s collaborators back from Taal (1999) that feels a generation ago, Alka Yagnik, Vaishali Samant & Richa Sharma are still involved in great tracks like Naram Kaalja (Chamkila) & Mirza, Ranga Ranga(Maidaan).
Ghar Aaya Mera Mirza! A pleasant retro style song, that opening couplet, hypnotic Sufi style singing by @TheRichaSharma , Tapas Roy’s oud, tabla, the infectious qawwali rhythm, Javed Ali’s signature rousing vocals. Winner track with a soul.
Manoj Muntashir Shukla’s poetry shines through all the tracks in the album, but in Mirza it gets the most earworm-y treatment by Rahman. Lines like Meri Jaan Tu Meri Saans Tu Mere Dil Ki Hai Aawaaz Tu, or these below just make the experience of listening to the song over and over again (who listens to Mirza just once!?) just so enriching, in an old-school smiling through listening to a song sort of way.
Dil Ki Dargaahon Ka Tu, Tu Hi To Murshid Hai Re, Sun Le Duaa O Saaiyaan. Teri Fakiri Main Hi Meri Ameeri Hai Re, O Sajna Jane Aa. Man Bhaaya Mera Mirza Ghar Aaya Mera Mirza
Jahann Bant Rahi Thee Niyamatein Usi Jaadui Se Bazar Mein Koi Motiyon Pe Nisaar Thaa Koi Chaand Ka Khariddar Thaa Main Fana Hui Teri Aag Me Bade Shauk Se, Mere Bhaag Me Likhwaya Mera Mirza! Ghar Aaya Mera Mirza
Musicians: Oud — Tapas Roy
Bass — Keba Jeremiah
Guitars — Keba Jeremiah, Shrey Gupta
Tabla — Sai Shravanam
Additional Vocals: Faiz Mustafa, Swagat Rathore
Additonal Programming — Nakul Abhyankar, Sarthak Kalyani
Orchestrated by Srikant Krishna
Strings recorded and played at Budapest Scoring Stage
RANGA RANGA
Vaishali Samant, MC Heam
Instantly impressive song. Lilting retro melody, the freshness of Mandolin strings set against southern percussion, and the rustic Telugu vocals of Vaishali Samant (famous singer from Maharashtra who has sung pop and remix chartbusters like Aika Daajeba, Keh Doon Tumhein and also sang for Rahman way back in Taal, Saathiya, Lagaan, Alaipayuthe) sets off the party mood.
AR Rahman then brings a shot-to-the-arm rap by MC Heam set on an infectious guitar hook and it’s a full on dance fest. So much to love in this song, from the beat patterns to the retro-styled humming. Like how he had introduced the Tamil chorus verses in Rait Zara Si (Atrangi Re), Rahman gives us another melody from the roots to cherish.
How he marries the vintage folk-dance melody with modern-day rap is only another ‘ARR Supreme Lord’s Secret Recipe’ thing. I am told that Sunil Milner who played that famous guitar riff in Param Sundari also features on this track.
Rap Written by M.C. Heam Telugu Lyrics by — “Saraswathiputhra” Ramajogayya Sastry
Rhythms Arrangements — Kumaran Sivamani
Mandolin — Tapas Roy
Flute — Kamalakar
Percussions — Guberan, Tapas, Karthick Vamsi, Raju, Lakshmi Narayana Additional Programming & Vocals — Sarthak Kalyani
TEAM INDIA HAIN HUM
AR Rahman, Nakul Abhyankar
I made 3…4…even 5 iterations of the song but the director wasn’t happy. I asked him what do you want? He said I want to feel like ‘we are coming for you’. So I told him I’ll just do it my way and give you the song.
Jaan Lelo Aaj Hamari Phir Dikhenge Kal Se,
Bol Do Zamane Se Ki Dar Bhi Darta Humse
Har Kadam Hum Aage Badhte ,Girte Padte Phir Bhi Ladte,
Aaja Azma Le Tu Kisme Kitna Hain Zor.
Team India Hain Hum.
Powerful track with signature energy & magical touch of AR Rahman. If music can fuel someone to win, it is this music, it is his music that does it the best. Another sports anthem by the master at the game.
Jhukne Se Pehle Soch Seene Pe, Soch Seene Pe, Tiranga Hai.
Himmatein Hain Aar Paar, Honsla Pahaar Hai
Aasma Faad De Tu Sher Ki Dahaad Hai
ARR is no stranger to sports anthems, with albums behind him like Pele, Bigil, Sachin, Lagaan. What he does here is again fresh and impressive. The track can both give you the feel of an arena anthem with adrenaline-pumping chorus and yet also give you the college-rock elements like synth-organ, bass licks and spacey electronic rhythm.
Team India Hain Hum — Scream from the highest tower, for AR Rahman beckons you to groove to this techno backed passionate track. Loving the guitars, drums(Gino Banks) & ARRs firey vocals. Noone does this like him. Theaters will be on fire.
Lyrics — Manoj Muntashir Shukla, Davinder Singh, SlowCheeta
Mixed and Mastered by — P. A. Deepak Apple Digital Master — Riyasdeen Riyan Music Supervisor — Hiral Viradia Musicians :- Drums — Gino Banks Bass — Prashanth Venkat Guitars — Fardeen Siddiqui, Sarosh Izedyar Additonal Programming — Nakul Abhyankar, Sarthak Kalyani Additional Vocals — Vaishali Samant, Sarthak Kalyani
DIL NAHI TODENGE
Javed Ali
This song scratches the itch for Rahman B-sides songs like Baazi Laga, Takey Takey or Hum Dilli Dilli Jayenge, which feel simplistic at first, but as you go deeper, you unravel many a layers that hook you in. Typical Rahman ‘will grow on you’ song that makes interesting use of Javed Ali, who adds a lilt and levity reminiscent of Mahendra Kapoor. Lyrics are again top grade here.
Maidaan ki humein kasam, Dil nahi todenge
A rich orchestral set-up with strings, claps, minimal rhythm, pipe flutes, retro chorus give the perfect backdrop for Javed Ali to do justice to the simple but effective words that are refreshing to hear. The humming stays with you, so does the reflective second interlude.
JAANE DO
AR Rahman, Hiral Viradia
Aawaazon ke dhaage kholo aur taraane gaane do,
Maidaano mein dhoom na kam ho
Jaate hain hum jaane do
Begins with a whimper with Hiral’s sweet voice, the chorus led by ARR creates the main verse softly over a bass-symphonic backdrop, the lines are repeated in a different tune but all is so seamless, you are floating in the poetry in the somberness of it all. Break. Soft piano and humming sustains the melody and you know something is coming…double bass is so good here, takes one back to Jaage Hain. And the vocals soar now to an emotional catharsis, each word hits the heart, the strings soar majestically, it’s a moment of triumph, but also a moment of introspection, of lingering hope or the death of dreams? One can feel the passage of time, of things ending, but with a glimmer of hope…aawazon ke dhaage kholo aur tarane gaane do…the orchestra creates a pensive mood with the violins here…we get the opening tune again but different words now ..dekhe koi dekhe khwabon ka yeh tamasha…what a song!
ARR is now giving us songs that are complete score pieces in themselves, with variations, with a journey, with a musical trajectory that is explored down to each small note and spaced out, like Aga Naga, Periyone, Omane and now this. It is like a mini education from ARR, a crash course in music appreciation, a marvel of sound to cherish, and celebrate.
Additional Credits:
Songs Composed, Arranged and Produced by: A.R. Rahman
Lyrics: Manoj Muntashir Shukla
Musicians :
Additional Programming — Nakul Abhyankar, Shubham Bhat, Samarth Srinivasan, Sarthak Kalyani, Saar Singhal, Kumaran Sivamani Oud and Mandolin — Tapas Roy Bass — Keba Jeremiah Guitars — Keba Jeremiah, Shrey Gupta, Fardeen Siddiqui, Sarosh Izedyar Tabla — Sai Shravanam Drums — Gino Banks Bass — Prashanth Venkat Flute — Kamalakar Percussions — Guberan, Tapas, Karthick Vamsi, Raju, Lakshman
Additional vocals : Yadu Krishna, Mayank Kapri, Srikant Krishna, Antra Nandy, Pooja Tiwari, Pooja Venkat, Niranjana Ramanan, Shridhar Ramesh, Faiz Mustafa, Sarthak Kalyani, Swagat Rathore,
Music Supervisor — Hiral Viradia
Mixed and Mastered by: Pradvay Sivashankar, Nitish R Kumar, P.A. Deepak Sound Engineers :- Panchathan Record Inn, Chennai Senior engineers — Suresh Permal, Karthik Sekaran
Recording engineers — Sreekanth Hariharan, Sarath Santosh
Assisting engineers — Aravind Crescendo, Sathish V Saravanan Panchathan Studios, Mumbai Recording engineers — Dilshaad Shabbir Shaikh, Nitish R Kumar Assisting Engineers- Harshil Pathak, Naval Chikhkiya
Head of Technical Services Riyasdeen Riyan
Dolby Atmos Music Riyasdeen Riyan
Musician Coordinators R Samidurai, Abdul Hayum
