Nikhita Gandhi steps in with ‘Jhalli Jhalli Jhalli’ and her delivery of the lyrics is so addictive that you’re left wanting more of her part (rather than the catchy ‘Dhayaanchand’ bits). He innovates and moves the song forward keeping the listener hooked and surprised. ‘DhayaanChand’ is the quintessential pre- Udta Punjaab Amit Trivedi we have craved to see again, not the shell of the unimaginative composer we’ve seen earlier this year. The electronic sound and the structure and rhythm of ‘Ishq Nazariya’ can make for an interesting choreography, which is exactly what happens on the screen with the dancing twins making their first appearance, eventually becoming a motif in the film.

Jazim Sharma and Harshdeep Kaur do a great job handling the vocals. The Punjabi earthiness comes out beautifully in the instrumentation.

Feelings can often find a home in the fuzzy area that cannot be defined. Trivedi creates a beautiful melody for ‘Grey Walaa Shade’, a song that encompasses most of what the movie is about – love cannot and will not conform to a set category of rules. The fuller and more soaring version is used for the relationship arc of Vicky and Rumi, and the stripped down, more bare rendition is used for Robbie and Rumi. Deveshi Sehgal’s ‘Unplugged’ version of the song is a bit jarring exclusively but the usage of both the versions in the film is exemplary. In ‘Daryaa’, the melody soars and Shahid Mallya and Ammy Virk sing the tune with conviction. Mast Ali sings the song with the required groove and Vicky Kaushal raps along nicely. Shellee’s lyrics are light and meaningful – ‘Pyaar vich Raanjhe Majnu lutt gaye / Fyaar waale jagah milte hi jutt gaye’. The whole movie pretty much revolves around modern-day romance, pyaar, and made up and obvious portmanteau for lust, fyaar. ‘F Se Fyaar’, the opening track of the album is the perfect Punjabi hip-hop track for film music lovers, with a good balance of melody and rap. The movie, set in Amritsar, requires the sound and words to be Punjabi and Trivedi and Shellee do complete justice to it. Kashyap is masterful in using the soundtrack of his films as a narrative device instead of using songs purely as an ornamental tool, and Manmarziyaan is no different.

Getting Amit Trivedi out of his insipid period is Anurag Kashyap’s Manmarziyaan.

Manmarziyaan songs downloadming