Rating: ***
2 years back, Golmaal was just another comedy multi starrer that had hit the screens and turned into a success. Circa 2008 and suddenly one finds its sequel, Golmaal Returns, being elevated to the status of being a potential blockbuster. Reasons are aplenty:
a) The first installment of Golmaal is still afresh in the mind of cine goers and is being appreciated in it's satellite and DVD run.
b) The sequel looks bigger and better with Shree Ashtavinayak Cinevision Ltd, becoming a formidable force in the passage of time. Coming in of Kareena Kapoor, Celina Jaitley, Amrita Arora and Anjana Sukhani has only added to the star quotient of the film.
c) The film is mounted at a much bigger scale, something which is pretty much on display courtesy 'dhamakedaar' promos
d) Director Rohit Shetty now has three successful films to his credit, though at varied degree, in the form of Sunday, Golmaal and Zameen. The young director is truly one of the top 'masala' filmmakers we have today.
e) Last but certainly not the least, past 18 months gone by have truly belonged to Pritam. 2008 has been phenomenal with Race, Singh Is Kinng, Jannat and Kismat Konnection.
No wonder, Golmaal Returns is being looked as the next BIG winner for Pritam. With Sameer as the writing partner, Pritam can't really afford to go wrong on this big project.
So does he deliver?
Pretty much so! Golmaal Returns has the kind of music which goes as per Shetty's sensibilities of 'action packed score' and Pritam does well in giving a 'Race' feel to the proceedings that ensures that listeners have their hands full of playing one more rip roaring score which is going to blaze on well in fast moving cars, dance floors and pubs.
No, don't expect any soothing melodies that Pritam has earlier composed for Jannat or Life... In A Metro. Here he goes holds-no-bar and comes up with a 'dhinchaak' score which is good enough for Shetty to create eye catching visuals that would surely attract audience into the theaters!
Cards are laid out wide open at the very onset with 'Tha Kar Ke' which surprisingly has a newbie composer Ashish Pandit at the helm of affairs.
Even though this dance number has a trademark Pritam sound to it with regular Neeraj Shridhar behind the mike, 'Tha Kar Ke' is mainly credited to Ashish Pandit who does a fantastic job in coming up with a chartbuster number that just can't go wrong. Shot on a lavish scale, this 'let's get rocking' song has Anvesha, Aakariti, Earl and Indie providing Neeraj some very good support which keeps his Hit record intact.
The number boasts of some lavish arrangements and with a huge orchestra supporting the tune, the 'remix version' turns out to be even funkier and makes you head for that dance floor pronto!
Nostalgia of Vishal-Shekhar's title song 'Golmaal' (sung by Anushka Manchanda) is back with the number 'Vacancy' which uses the punch word 'Golmaal' that is amalgamated well into the tune created by Pritam.
The number takes on exactly from where 'Tha Kar Ke' left and sees coming together of English as well as Hindi lyrics. Yet again, the number boasts of a full-on arrangement which leave hardly a pause in the entire 5 minute duration.
With Neeraj Shridhar leading the charge yet again, the number (with Sameer, Neeraj Shridhar and Ashish Pandit coming together for the lyrics) also features Benny, Suhail and Suzi Q who keep the racy mood intact for Golmaal Returns and ensures that it would scale up the charts. The 'Kilogram Remix', as the name suggests, is quite a handful and successfully manages to throw its weight!
15 years back, 'Tu Saala' would have been classified as a 'chalu' number. Today, with modern day arrangements and a classy setting, this one would go down as a number which would work well both amongst the college going youngsters as well as the masses.
Don't bother too much about the lyrics here, this one again is a 'beats driven' number (expectedly appearing in a remix version too) which sees Anushka Manchanda in a different avtar altogether. Though the rhythm here is predominantly Indian, the arrangements are Western which gives it a different feel.
The number won't go as far as 'Tha Kar Ke' and 'Vacancy' but should be an eye candy on screen, courtesy all the hot-bods that Golmaal Returns boasts of.
Monali had impressed one and all in her sensual rendition of 'Touch Me Touch Me' [Race] earlier this year. In Golmaal Returns she returns along with Suzy Q for a song that has been interestingly titled 'Meow'.
A naughty number with a sensual touch to it, 'Meow' has quite some attitude to it which would truly appeal to Generation X.
With Hindi lyrics by Sameer and Neeraj Shridhar, Ashish Pandit & Indie contributing with English lyrics, 'Meow' is a Hinglish track that has the kind of sound which has almost been patented by Pritam.
Though the number does touch upon dark shades as well, it primarily remains a little quirky and is catchy enough to warrant two more versions - a full on 'English version' and a 'remix version'. One looks forward to see how the 'English version' fits into the narrative since it has quite some interesting lyrics to boast of!
To bring back the nostalgia of the Golmaal, there is also a pleasant surprise in the form of an entire soundtrack by Vishal-Shekhar from the original which is included as a part of the package.
Golmaal Returns is yet another winner from Pritam and guest composer Ashish Pandit who delivers what is expected from a soundtrack for a film belonging to action-comedy genre.
No one attempts to do anything exceptional or different from routine and walk the path that has been successful in the months gone by. The music may not go the 'Race' way but does well enough to ensure immense awareness about the film due to its fast paced approach.
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