Label: Sony Music

Music: Salim-Sulaiman

Lyrics: Niranjan Iyengar, Irfan Siddique (Ali Maula)

Rating: 3/5

One wonders if Salim-Sulaiman were in a bad form after scores that followed Fashion. Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, Tasveer 8x10, Luck, Aashaayein left very little to be recalled. However, Kurbaan seems to be a breather as the duo has experimented with sounds, genres and singers.

Coming to the point, does score of Kurbaan offer something we haven't heard? Yes - tracks like Rasiya and Ali Maula do standout. Salim-Sulaiman also needs to be appreciated for keeping the quantity in check (just 5 originals and one remix). As far as lyrics go, Niranjan Iyengar and Irfan Siddique (Ali Maula) lift the tracks to a great extent with his slightly Urdu bent, which you may find just a little hard to understand.

The core feel of the tracks is largely contemporary sufi (Ali Maula, Dua and Shukran Allah) - except Rasiya which is a raga based composition. For this album, the duo has experimented with Kailash Kher - Sukhwinder Singh combination and also presented the sensuous voice of Shruti Pathak (Marjaawa, Fashion) once again.

Speaking about the best on the album; it's undoubtedly Rasiya by Shruti Pathak. After long one hears a composition that is soothing, melodious and lyrically engaging. The track is based on a Hindustani raga (most likely, Puriya Kalyani). Shruti Pathak sounds 'super', and if you're one of those, who is looking forward to explore this album, this is were you should start from.

The next track that really stands out is Ali Maula sung by Salim Merchant himself. The duo have given contemporary touch to the song, but at the same time kept intact the soul of the song, which, I think is quite laudable – the song doesn't really get lost in the electronic hulla-hoop. Unfortunately, the remix version of the same song is so in-your-face, that it becomes a task to figure if it's a song or some drum machine. So, while the original sounds impressive, the remix version completely disappoints.

Dua by Kailash Kher, Marianne DCruz Aiman and Sukhwinder Singh is more on the peppier side. Though this can't be called 'sufi' by any means, it can surely be called 'filmi sufi' because the forcefully inserted hinglish 'alfaaz' does jar your ears. The Kailash Kher-Sukhi combo doesn't work the way it worked for Vishal Bharadwaj's Fataak, but well, if you need a song to shake a leg, anything and everything works these days.

Shukran Allah sung by Salim Merchant, Shreya Ghosal and Sonu Nigam really catches your attention as it opens, but the familiar beat and tune fail to hold you for long. It may not be the best track on the album, but surely has a nice chorus line.

What follows next changes the mood of the album altogether. The funk song Kurbaan Hua sung by Vishal Dadlani is perhaps the only song on the album which is heavily loaded with effects, loops and strong basslines. Those who are familiar with Vishal Dadlani's band Pentagram will know where the inspiration comes from. The song is energetic, and is probably stored for some action sequence(?)

Our Pick

Definetly Rasiya, Ali Maula (original) and Kurbaan Hua

Last word

With this album, Salim-Sulaiman does show signs of getting back into the groove – let's hope there are some fireworks next time.

The review had wrongly credited Prasoon Joshi as the films lyricist. It's Niranjan Iyengar and Irfan Siddique (Ali Maula).

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