Music Review : Dil Dhadakne Do

Dil Dhadakne Do is the eagerly awaited Zoya Akthar venture, hot on the heels of Zindagi Na Milengi Dobara. It re-assembles the winning musical-lyrical combination of Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy and Javed Akhtar and features vocals from Siddharth Mahadevan, Sunidhi Chauhan, Sukhwinder Singh, Farhan Akhtar and Priyanka Chopra amongst others. 

The title track certainly starts things off with bang. The techno-rock track features an infectiously catchy hook with decent lyrics to boost. Priyanka Chopra encapsulates the attitude and confidence of the track perfectly but Farhan Akhtar’s vocals sound rather strained at times. Otherwise, the track has all the making of a chart buster.

Pehli Baar is classic rock and for that matter classic Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy. It is a very like-able duet by Sukriti and Siddharth with a trendy yet old-worldly charm to it. Siddharth is particularly outstanding, his vocals a brilliant mix of the new and the old and Sukriti complements him well. Lyrics on the other hand are strictly okay but other than that it is quite a nice track.

Gallan Goodiyaan is an up beat track of the Punjabi persuasion and Sukwinder Singh, Shankar Mahadevan and Yashmita Singh definitely bring their special brand of enthusiasm to make it all the more enjoyable.

The jazzy Girls Like To Swing, features a brilliant orchestration and Sunidhi Chauhan does not miss a beat with an equally fantastic performance. Lyrics start off on the poorer end of the scale but eventually do pick up. Ultimately, Sunidhi’s inherent style and charm more than makes up for it.

The poignant Phir Bhi Yeh Zindagi is another classic Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy composition, featuring a great ensemble of vocals from Vishal Dadlani, Alyssa Mendonsa, Sapna Pathak, Farhan Akhtar and Divya Kumar. Further, the haunting melody extenuates the reflective lyrics beautifully, bringing the album to a bittersweet close.

In summary, Dil Dhadakne Do is a short, elegant and entertaining collection of songs from Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, re-affirming why the trio are one of India’s leading composers. Arguably, it is less introspective than Zindagi Na Milengi Dobara but equally impressive.

If designations are to be made, the title song easily stands out as a top entertainer with the remaining tracks being close runner ups. In any event, it is one of the more enjoyable soundtracks of 2015.

Cheers !

Jeetendra Mehra AKA The BUNNYMAN