Ugly Aur Pagli

Guess Ugly Aur Pagli is turning out to one film where the leading actors are not worried at all about the joke being on them. So much so that even the film's title doesn't spare them and calls out the leading lady as mad and the man as ugly looking! The actors in question? Ranvir Shorey and Mallika Sherawat, the unlikeliest of couples, just as was in case of PNC's last romantic comedy Pyaar Ke Side Effects.

This time around, it is Anu Malik at the helm of affairs and one hopes that he gets it right yet again after his recent release Love Story 2050. Amitabh Verma gets one of his biggest assignments till date with an entire album to his credit.

Well, is it indeed Anu Malik or instead Pritam who is at the helm of affairs here? That's because the moment the opening number 'Talli' begins, you know that the new age club sound is clearly belonging to Pritam territory. Add to this Hard Kaur coming up with her English-Punjabi rendition and you know that it is going to be one fun outing.

Well, this is not all as Mika Singh joins soon along with Anmol Malik, Anu's daughter, and together they have total 'dhamaal' in the offering. A dance floor number that has Ranvir, Mallika and Hard Kaur matching steps while being in high spirits, 'Talli' is an instant winner and makes an immediate impression in the very first listening. And 'sone pe suhaga' is the 'remix version' that ensures that the tempo of Ugly Aur Pagli remains consistent from start till the finish of the album.

Ishq Bector, who is fast rising up in Bollywood's rap-n-reggae scene, comes along with Anushka Manchanda for 'Karle Gunaah'. As it turns out, this is second straight winner for Anu Malik who goes holds-no-bar to create a club song, which just goes perfectly with the urban requirements of the film. While Bector kick starts the proceedings, Anushka holds fort for most of the song's duration with her Punjabi rendition.

Yet another dance number which keeps the high spirits of the album on while giving an overall funky feel to Ugly Aur Pagli, 'Karle Gunaah' is fun on move even as it arrives in it's much faster 'remix version' lower down the order.

Now this is yet another composition that holds so much semblance to the kind of music that Pritam composes, especially in the beginning portions. 'Yeh Nazar' is third straight cool-n-funky number in a row, which has Sunidhi Chauhan at the helm. Though the song starts off as a Pritam tune, it has an Anu Malik stamp all over it the moment it gets into the 'antara' portions.

While the song has an inherent melodic base to it, it has been laden with all around Western arrangements that ensures there is not a single dull moment in its four and a half minutes duration. Shaan joins the show even as the song is mid way through and does well in taking it through till its completion.

It's a Spanish beginning to 'Shut Up, Aa Nachle' with Anu Malik taking it on himself to not just get the arrangements right but even get behind the mike. He not just croons the Spanish part of the song but continues to sing the rest of the song as well. The beats that accompany the song though are straight out of 'Mukkala Muqabla' from Prabhu Deva's Humse Hai Muqabla that was released more than a decade back.

Coming back to 'Shut Up, Aa Nachle', it is a vintage Malik composition all the way, which is spiced up further courtesy Vasundhara Das who is quite good in her rendition for a song which has a mix of Spanish, Western and Punjabi mood. Dibyendu Mukherji is heard for a brief moment as well but the song predominantly stays on to be a Malik-Das combo effort. Yet again, a song that aids in creating an overall fast-paced mood of the album and turns out to be a fine inclusion.

Longest song of the album arrives at the very end and has Mohit Chauhan coming behind the mike. From the man who has crooned some melodious tracks like 'Dooba Dooba Rehta Hai', 'Guncha' and 'Tum Se Hi', one doesn't expect a club outing and this is exactly the case as 'Yaad Teri Aaye' turns out to be a dipped-in-melody number that brings an immediate 'thehrav' to the scheme of things in Ugly Aur Pagli.

A track about remembering your loved one and missing her presence in your life, 'Yaad Teri Aaye' is a very good number that has to be played on when alone. With only a guitar accompanying Mohit's soulful vocals, the song is a brilliant effort by Anu Malik who gets a pure composition rolling and makes one wonder if the industry has been unfair to him during last couple of years by ignoring him in a big way! A perfect finale to a fun album.

What works perfectly fine in case of Ugly Aur Pagli is that there is not a single dull moment in this album that lasts close to 35 minutes. While club sound prevails for most part of the album and throws one song after another that work together in creating just the perfect ambience for this mad romantic comedy, the ending is just perfect too with Mohit Chauhan's 'Yaad Teri Aaye' winning accolades hands down. Go for this one and have some good times!