Tareen Zameen Par Music Review Friday, November 30, 2007

Producer: Aamir Khan
Director: Aamir Khan
Starring: Aamir Khan, Tanay Chheda, Darsheel Safary, and Tisca Chopra
Music: Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy and Shailendra Barve (Guest)
Lyrics: Prasoon Joshi and Amole Gupte (Guest)




So when this hugely talented actor launches his own movie house ‘Aamir Khan productions’ and at the same time marks his directorial debut with Taare Zameen Par (TZP), as an audience you can do nothing but take note. What’s the fascinating theme that has inspired him to mark his debut (producer/directorial) and more importantly for music lovers, who does he back for the soundtrack? In short….’Kids’ and the talented trio ‘Shankar Ehsaan Loy’ (SEL)! Without going into too much detail, the movie concerns the subject of childhood (in fact it’s been billed as a ‘sensitive portrayal of childhood’) based on one man’s experience of working with children for 7 years. That man is Amole Gupte (an actor and close friend of Aamir Khan for 25 years) who is the brains behind the movie (writer/creative director) and the man in charge of pre-production including the soundtrack which he worked on closely with SEL. So does it live up to expectations and contribute to the common goal of the movie which is to enhance our ‘sensitivity towards children’? And more interestingly, for the now grown ups including me and you, does it rekindle our very own childhood in the process?

Dekho inhein yeh hain aas ki bhoondein, patton ki godh mein aasman se koodhein. Angdayee lein phir karwat badal kar, nazuk se mothi, has de pisal kar… - Prasoon Joshi [Taare Zameen Par]

The sound of twinkling stars gives rise to your journey of (re)discovering what childhood actually means i.e. how children behave, why they behave in such a manner and the impact that has on everyone around them. Thus commences the quite brilliant title track Taare Zameen Par. What starts off as a slow light hearted poem supported by a soft piano arrangement in the background, eventually transcends into a heavenly sketch of the minds of children and those around them i.e. the recipients of their behaviour. SEL use a wide array of (synth) instruments in a bid to deliver a soothing number but it’s Ehsaan’s guitar and the intermittent use of the sitar / tabla that achieves this so successfully. I have not heard Shankar Mahadevan sing as well as this for years such is the impact of his supremely somber vocals (backed by superb background vocals of Dominique and Vivinenne). The singing is indeed a highlight of this track and coupled with Prasoon Joshi’s amazing heart-felt lyrics this track excels completely off the richter scale! Verdict: This is a divine listening experience that makes you sit up, enjoy and contemplate the meaning, behaviour and impact of children. To call it special is an understatement.