I heard so much about Kaakha Kaakha from my friends that I rented the DVD sometime back only to find out that the DVD had no subtitles. Although I listen to Ilayaraja, Rahman and Harris's songs in Tamil, I don't understand the language that well. Though disappointed with the DVD, I still slid the disc into the player mouthing incessant curses at the guy, from whose store I rent DVDs, for giving me a pirated copy. But unknowingly I sat through the entire movie glued to my seat. Only the following week did I read on idlebrain.com that Kaakha Kaakha was now being remade in Telugu. I was glad that after remaking many melodramas from Tamil, Venky [Venkatesh] has decided to remake one superb movie from Tamil this time around.

Without digressing any further let me talk about the case in point. The scintillating combination of Cheli - director Gautham Menon and music director Harris Jayaraj - after taking Tamil Nadu by storm with their second movie Kaakha Kaakha are now geared to rock Andhra with the Telugu version titled Gharshana produced by Shiva Raju and Vekat Raju. Victory Venkatesh enacts the role of an encounter specialist [played to perfection by Surya in Tamil] and Asin is paired with Venky for the first time here.

Harris Jayaraj's music for Venky's Vasu [directed by Karunakaran] was a huge success unlike the movie. While the music of Cheli and Vasu made Harris a known name with Telugu music aficionados, his score for Gharshana will make Harris a household name among Telugu music lovers. Why? Read on.

1. Cheliya Cheliya
This fast paced number wins hands down for its pulsating beats. KK sings it appropriately and Suchitra gives him company singing the wacky words. Kula Sekhar's lyrics about the hero searching for the heroine are neat. This one's an instant winner.

2. Andagaada
This number, replacing the slow and seductive 'Ondra Renda' [sung by Bombay Jayashree] from the Tamil album, is a breezy one with mostly high pitches [in the stanzas] sung by Harini in her typical pleasing style. If you can pay a deaf ear to words like noroorinche aadabomma [only if they bother you too much], you should be able to receive Kula Sekhar's lyrics without any complaints.

3. Ye chilipi
With catchy Hindi lines interspersed among Kula Sekhar's Telugu lyrics in this enchanting melody, this is quite an impressive number though a little slow paced compared to the other songs in this album. Srinivas comes up with a mellifluous rendition. One line that registers in your mind after listening to the song is - nuvvu achhullona halluvo.

4. Aadatanama Choodatarama
Despite passable lyrics and an average tune, this item number is racy enough to find some fans mainly because of its impressive orchestration. Sung by Sunitha sarathy [who sang 'Hello Goodbye Priya from Yuva] and Febimani, this one does not rise to the same levels as the other songs in the album. Kula Sekhar's lyrics remind us that this is an item song and that he did not have to care too much about working hard on it.

5. Nanne Nanne
This highly infectious fast paced number is definitely among the zestiest compositions of Harris Jayaraj. Tippu and Shalini Singh, who sang the Tamil version, sing this one appreciably with a right amount of ebullience. Given the situation of the song, Kula Sekhar words the song nicely.

The album also includes two funky techno music bits titled Encounter and Theme of Gharshana that are electrifying.

Overall, Harris Jayaraj's music in this album is racy and infectiously catchy winning him applause once again after his last direct musical score in Telugu for Vasu. Though he reuses most of his compositions from Kaakha Kaakha here, that indeed comes across as a natural choice given the awards and appreciation he won for the same score in Tamil. And beyond any doubts this is one album that has refreshing songs with good orchestration in recent times. Two thumbs up to Harris for giving us a wonderful album. After a long time, Kula Sekhar gets a single card as the lyricist and he does a decent job. Although I believe Venky has a sure shot winner in Gharshana I would be greatly disappointed if this flick fails to click with Telugu audience.

Sreya Picks: Nanne Nanne, Cheliya Cheliya, Andagaada, Ye Chilipi

Tailpiece: I started writing audio reviews for idlebrain.com with Venkatesh and Harris Jayaraj's Vasu and by the time they have come together for the second time after more than 2 years, I am nearing the half-century mark with my audio reviews. 2 years is a pretty long time considering how I started writing reviews for idlebrain.com. Special thanks to Jeevi and all you folks out there for your appreciation and criticism.

Click here to read the other articles by Sreya Sunil

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