Directors - Sanjay Gupta, Apoorva Lakhia, Hansal Mehta, Jasmeet Dhodi, Meghna Gulzar, Rohit Roy

Music Directors - Strings, Anu Malik, Anand Raj Anand, Bappi
Lahiri, Shibani Kashyap, Shafqat Ali Khan

It's highly unusual to have a 3 CD pack for a film, but then Dus Kahaniyaan is an unusual film too. With so many brains behind its making, such innovations are quite expected. The music in all the three packs makes for an astounding 159 MB, speaking in material terms.

Dus kahaniyaan - Lounge and Club

The title track Dus in its lounge avatar, or what is titled the original one, is a nice track which could hover in the charts for some time. It will have its own shelf life because of the typical expected beats. The club mix is a nice, foot-stomping track. It's got the aggression and at the same time, drives the listener to discover something new about the song. The club version is trendier than the lounge one.

Aaja Soniye occurs in both the club as well as the lounge versions. The lounge version is better mainly because of the simplicity in the beats. The female voice comes like an icing on the cake. The club version is quite tolerable, but it's doubtful if it can leave a mark. Vocals by Sudhanshu Pande are a definite plus.

Bin Tum Gum Sum, is a sad but pleasant track, similar to 'Tum Chale Jaate ho to' from the film Dus; apart from the fact that it was dominated by the female voice there and this track is sung by a male singer. This song isn't a part of the club version which in a way is quite amazing as something really good could have been worked out with it.

Bhula Diya (Club) sounds more on the lines of the Tere Bin remixed version with that element of gloominess and scope to shake a leg too. This is one song which is going to hit the chartbusters, and has the potential to stay in the top 5 for long. The whole song rhymes all along, giving it a poetic feel.

Jaaniye starts on a good note in both the lounge and the club versions. But in the club version when the singer yells 'jaaniye', it borders on the sinister!
Otherwise, this is a very sensual track with loads of elements to take a person high with its tunes. It's only the techno in the club version that gets pretty annoying as the song proceeds.

Mika's Nach Le Soniye sounds much like a repetition of Aaja Soniye and Jaaniye clubbed together. One noticeable thing about the music is that not just the lyrics, even the song titles rhyme with each other. Nevertheless, it's a very retro sounding track ready to hit the pubs and cars in a big way. And yeah, this is one track which will be played very often on your favourite radio stations especially on Saturday nights.

Looks like 'mahiya' has become the favourite word with the lyricists. O Mahiya is quite a listenable and enjoyable track. It sounds pretty hip with its absolute rock-disco attitude. The song goes -

Aagaya dil mera dil ki baaton mein
Kho gaya surmai raaton mein
Chun liye sabnami lamhe aankhon mein
Tab chali zindagi saaason mein
Koi vada na tha kuch irada na tha
Dil mein tu aagaya jane kaise

Now you know why I say that the songs of this movie rhyme well. Nevertheless, this is a good song in both its forms and can be expected to be the next big thing.

Mushkil Kushaa makes its appearance only once in the 3-CD pack i.e. in the lounge version. The listeners would be quite happy with it as this smooth flowing track would have turned out to be a great mess had it been moulded in the club version too. This six-minute long track has a very soothing voice of Kshitij that mesmerises the listener, sets the tempo for the song and takes him to another level. This is one song which may stay on for long not on the charts, but definitely with the listeners. Bappa Lahiri, Bappi Lahiri's son has composed and produced the two Shafqat Ali Khan tracks in the movie.

Vichodeya Ne is one song which gives the feel often given by Rahat Fateh Ali Khan in his songs. The singer Shafqat Ali Khan has done a splendid job with the vocals. The music has a very Indian base to it and would definitely appeal to the masses.
Kaala Peela - The title of the song will definitely keep you from tuning in to it. But when the song starts, it sounds very promising. But the mixture of some western beats with the Indian voice doesn't really gel. Had it been sung by some female artiste like Subha Mudgal, it would have been a little better than it is. The composition and the vocals don't really have a good match.

Something very noticeable in all the club version songs of this film is the fact that they get very heavy with the music. Truly speaking, when one says club, the music need not be headache inducing heavy beats. The music needs to be on the stronger side but yet, should appeal. The songs in the club version of the CD do appeal, but not for long.

Dus Kahaniyaan - Poems

It was really different to find a CD with poems in it. It stays true to one's expectations. Gulzar saab has seriously created magic with this compilation. Based on all the ten stories of the movie, each poem was penned down and recited by the stars of the different stories.

Sanjay Dutt has recited the poems Chaal Chalo Tum and Khuda based on the story - Rise and Fall. Both the poems are brilliantly written and with Sanjay Dutt reciting them there is absolutely no chance of any drawbacks. Nana Patekar, who is a part of the story titled Gubbare recites the poem Tare utare Hue Din. Although this is a direct poem, but when reflected on - the hidden meanings are simply unavoidable.

Nasseruddin Shah and Shabana Azmi star in the story Rice Plate and for this, they recite the poem Der Aayad together. The lead actor for the story Puranmashi, Amrita Singh recites the poem based on it titled Raat Tamir Karein. Amrita's voice in this poem is simply apt with the theme. It is dense, it's got seriousness and the seduction - basically it's got the absolute feeling required for the poem's recitation.

The poems that last for not more than three minutes each sound like a reflection of the visuals of the stories. The background score for each poem is more or less similar thus giving it a continuum feel. The other poems which includes Bauchaar of the story Lovedale starring Aftab Shivdasani, Neha Uberoi and Anupam Kher, stands out from the rest because of the slight beats of the 'payal' in the background during the pauses. The story titled Strangers in the night with Neha Dhupia reciting the poem Hatak sounds out of the blue because of the deep, painful voice. The extra dose of music in this poem sets the mood right. Manoj Bajpai reciting Khali Samandar for the story Zahir starts off on a breathless note with a very provoking thought. The pauses that follow just get the listeners imagining what could follow. The poem moves on to the softer pace creating a mental noise with words enough to make the person tune again and listen to it.

A female voice reciting Khudkhushi for the story High on the Highway is beautiful with the pregnant pauses that gears up the swing for the recitation. The last two stories Sex and on the Beach and Matrimony both have upbeat, matured poems.

Where the pauses in Mujhe Talaash Nahi (Sex on the Beach) extend for long thus lowering the tempo of the recitation, Talaq (Matrimony) is simply amazing to listen to. Both of these poems are very powerful within their own genres.

Our Rating - 3/5