Ram Gopal Varma Ki Aag Review {1.5/5} & Review Rating
Ram Gopal Varma was right. From not even a single angle does his 'Aag' resemble all time 'masala' classic 'Sholay'. Though 31st August would
finally reveal that how far does his 'tribute' to the classic work, one look at the songs currently being on at the small screen prove that the
director has gone off tangent when it comes to music of the film. With sole exception of 'Mehbooba Mehbooba', there is no 'Yeh
Dosti', no 'Koyi Haseena', no 'Holi Ke Din' and no 'Jab Tak Hai Jaan' in the album, hence making it quite obvious that
RGV has decided to make RGV Ki Aag solely on his own terms!
With his in-house team of composers and lyricists like Amar Mohile, Prasanna Shekhar and Nitin Raikwar along with Ganesh Hegde, DJ Amyth,
Shabbir Ahmed, Sajid-Farhad and Sharim-Momin, RGV packages RGV Ki Aag with nine tracks. Well, the packaging comes with quite a
few holes!
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While Helen's version of 'Mehbooba' in the original Sholay was all fun and enchanting, it tends to get dark once Urmila's gets her
passionate act in place for Ganesh Hegde composed and choreographed version. Credit must be given to Ganesh and lyricist Shabbir Ahmed
for completely redesigning the look and feel of the song though one can't really say that the final version turns out to be an ultimate attempt.
Different it does sound from the original but not necessarily better. The basic rhythm is thankfully intact which keeps the interest alive in
'Mehbooba' while Sunidhi Chauhan along with Sukhwinder Singh do a decent job too to retain the high voltage drama that befits the
song's situation. Amitabh Bachchan too makes an intermittent appearance though rather than singing he just narrates a few lines at places.
As expected DJ Amyth's 'remix version' of the song takes around a couple of minutes to set the pace for creating a club feel. However once the
task is accomplished, the song continues to move at its own high pace with zero respite whatsoever.
Remember 'Yaaron Sun Lo Zara' from RGV's own Rangeela? A song that has it's tune set in the same style, though with a different
theme and situation setting, 'Ruk Ja' is what you call a 100% authentic 'tapori' track. What sets the song apart from numerous other
'tapori' songs is it's western rhythm with some catchy beats to boast by Amar Mohile.
Lyrically there isn't much that you carry home as Sajid-Farhad build up a 'ched-chaad' mood though Vinod Rathod and Sunidhi Chauhan sing
the track with a kind of forceful punch which could well go down well with the characters of Ajay Devgan and Nisha Kothari on whom the song
is choreographed. Will the song be remembered 3 months down the line? No! But as a part of the film, it won't be a bad watch for those 5
minutes!
'Holi' starts with the famous phrase - 'Holi Kab Hai...Kab Hai Holi', the difference being that instead of Amjad Khan, it is Sudesh
Bhonsle (for Amitabh Bachchan) mouthing it this time around. Composed by Prasanna Shekhar and written by Sharim Momin, 'Holi' has
Ravindra Upadhyaye, Shweta Pandit, Farhad Bhiwandiwala and Shreya Ghoshal teaming up for the song.
A 'chalu' number at best, 'Holi' has good rhythm which should keep your interest alive in the proceedings but that's about it. There is
nothing about it which would make it go down in the history books as a worthy addition to 'holi' tracks!
After all the rhythm and beats comes a sensual number 'Cha Raha' which has been written and composed by RGV regular Nitin Raikwar.
The song seems to be almost based on the same template as that of 'Makhmali Ye Badan' which was created for RGV produced Road.
The pacing as well as overall treatment combined with the style of rendition by Vinod Rathod and Shweta Pandit is quite similar in feel.
To add to it, even choreography and picturisation is done in a similar fashion with the only difference being that instead of Vivek Oberoi and
Antara Mali, the couple in the thick of action comprises of Ajay Devgan and Nisha Kothari. This one should set the temperatures soaring.
Remember the haunting background score that welcomed Gabbar Singh whenever he came on the frame in Sholay? The same piece is
heard again at the beginning of title song 'Hai Aag Yeh' which is situational at best. The area where it works is to get the action masala
flavor of the 70s and the early 80s as the orchestra is purposefully set in the same mould to revive nostalgia.
Later the same track which has music by Amar Mohile and lyrics by Sharim Momin is heard as’theme music' sans any singer coming behind the
mike. In fact coming together of saxophones in this theme music version helps in pumping the excitement as it brings with it three most
entertaining minutes of the album.
Now what exactly is this song? And first of all, is it a song at all? Prasanna Shekhar's composed 'Jee Le' is so loud and tuneless that
one gets a strong sense of aversion in the very first listening. Lyrics by Sajid-Farhad don't come with any sort of recollection value and the
result is that this Vinod Rathod-Farhad Bhiwandiwala sung duet turns out to be the most forgettable inspiration from 'Ye Dosti' that any
filmmaker/composer/singer/actor would have ever attempted.
Noise level continues to be at its unbearable worst with 'Dum' thankfully turning out to be the last song in the offering. Composed by
Amar Mohile and written by Sharim Momin, Vinod Rathod rendered 'Dum' attempts at being at it's passionately challenging best but just
doesn't leave any impression. What it leaves are a few scars on your ear drums and a strong headache!
Ram Gopal Varma Ki Aag doesn't have a single track that could be a good contender for a Top-10 spot. Curiosity to hear the new version
of 'Mehbooba Mehbooba' may find a few takers but beyond that the only two tracks that are reasonably tolerable are 'Cha Raha''
and to an extent 'Ruk Ja'. Other than these, it is just the theme music of 'Hai Aag Yeh' that boasts of boasts of nostalgic value.
One only hopes that the effort gone in making the film is much bigger than the one which must have went into creating the soundtrack.
