Kashmakash – Sanjoy-Raja

Kashmakash, a bengali film dubbed into Hindi, is a Rituparno Ghosh film. The music is by Sanjoy-Raja and I have no clue about their repertoire. I got curious about this album because the lyrics of the Hindi version were written by Gulzar. I listened to this album once and I knew that was enough, for me to rank it among the best albums of this year. The album is filled with melodies, whose melodic quotient reminds us of the yesteryear great compositions and masters and also Rabindra Sangeet. My take on them:

1. Mannwaa Aage bhaage re: Shreya Ghoshal sings this exquisite melody that delicately tiptoes on string orchestra, bells, flute and choral work. Rabindra Sangeet oozes out of the tune and the tune takes a beautiful flight with the lines “Saari raat apne sapnon mein…” while descending back into a surprise sub-melody of “din gaya jaise rootha rootha shaam hai ajnaanee… puraanee pal jee raha hai aankhen paani paani…”. Gulzar is in top form and why not, for he himself idolizes Rabindranath Tagore. Shreya Ghoshal inserts befitting expressions that add the effect and you would just want to listen to this again.

2. Khoya Kya: This album is one of those albums where Hariharan sings in low scale and it adds a certain depth to the emotions conveyed in the song. This song is a fine example where Hariharan’s rendition is very controlled. A pathos laden composition, the song makes effective use of Piano, Pakhawaj, a poignant flute and string orchestra. It is intriguing that the string orchestra plays a high note when hariharan is on a lower note. In short, this song is a mood composition.

3. Teri Seemaayen: Another Shreya Ghoshal melody. This song has a tune that almost embraces us in a warmth. It is interesting that the composers decided to do away with interludes in this song. In a way, this song is like singing out a beautiful piece of poetry. There is only a small flute piece in the middle, that punctuates between two eloquently written stanzas. The mild piano strokes, the string orchestra counter melodies charm the song all through. Gulzar’s words just elevate the composition. I love the lines..

“Main aadhi adhoori baithi kinaare…

nadiya nadiya aansoo aansoo rona…

baaton pe rona… nainon ki zubaani..

raat din kehte rehna hai…

aag andhar ki koyi na dekhe…

palak jhapakthe tum jo dekho…

Tujhko paana.. Tujhko Choonaa..

Mukti ka paana hai…”

Only Gulzar can construct such beautiful imageries. The composers did a wonderful job in handling the melody of this composition.

4. Nau Meri: Another pathos melody. Hariharan at his low-scale voice again. The song attains a poignant depth right from the 1st line. The composition, set in raag Sindhu Bhairavi, reminds us of many old melodies. The arrangements in this song are extremely brilliant. Some subtle baselines, string orchestra and a soaring flute. Halfway through the song, Madhushree joins in, again at a very low scale. The unhurried elaboration of the raaga almost indicates that the singers themselves are experiencing the song, instead of plainly singing it. I love the way the charanams are brought back to the pallavi. The bansuri, underplayed during the 1st half, almost becomes another singer towards the end taking the song to its perfect crescendo.

5. Anandloke: This is a bengali song and sounds like a traditional Rabindra Sangeet song. The choral work and minimalistic arrangements leave the listener to understand the melody in Rabindra Sangeet. Many familiar phrases, but it is a short song.

Summary: Teri Seemaayen, Manwaa and Nau Meri are my picks of the album. Brilliant compositions that are handled with extreme care and maturity. Ratuparno Ghosh must be commended for his choice of music and the composers deserve an applause for blending the beautiful melodies with crisp and adequate instrumentation without letting one dominate the other. And Gulzar ofcourse, for his wonderful lyrics. We don’t get albums like these often. Grab it for a mood experience, on some lonely moonlit night. Worth it.