Customer Reviews

Monsoon Wedding (Score)

5 star:		(32)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The wait is over! The soundtrack to Monsoon Wedding captures the spirit of the ultimate Indian party, that of a Punjabi wedding, with a mixure of bhangra, Indo-techno, and Indian chillout music to boot! The lead vocal track Aaj Mera Jee Kardaa by one of the greatest Punjabi male vocalists is a percussive standout and I actually think the "classical" ending works. Someone should do an extended remix of this track (the CD coincidentally includes a "Zimpala Remix" which is a downtempo, chill-out version). My personal favorite, however, is Chunari Chunari, an uptempo, male-female duet, with soaring melodies, crystal vocals, chugging nicely to a housified beat. The dance classic Aaja Nachle by Bally Sagoo feat. Hans Raj Hans keeps the feet dancing and when they're not, the two downtempo remixes of Fuse Box and the rest of the soundtrack make up the perfect accompaniment to take in all the delights of an Indian wedding.

This comedy drama blends family and domestic problems within the clever direction from
Mira Nair(director), things get more involved with an Indian wedding...leading off this
wonderful cast Naseeruddin Shah(Lalit Verma), Lillete Dubey(Pimmi Verma), Shefali
Shetty(Ria Verma), Vasundhara Das(Aditi Verma) and Parvin Dabas(Hemant Rai)...must
mention this film was a winner of the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival...characters are
strong and the screenplay by Sabrina Dhawan is brilliant with Nair's near perfect directing
skills.

Now about the score...Mychael Dana lends multi-layered melodies upon themes capturing the
spirit of modern Delhi(english/hindi/punjabi)...Dana's arrangements on "ALLAH
HOO"..."LOVE AND MARIGOLDS"..."HOLD ME, I'M FALLING", takes the listener into
a cultural richness with sweeping orchestration direct from India...along with this bawdy score
is the traditional tunes celebrating the brides wedding "TODAY THE WEATHER PLAYS
TRICKS ON ME"(Mohammed Rafi)..."COME TO ME MY BELOVED"(Midival
Pundtiz)..."COME ON DANCE"(Han Raj Hans), sounds of the late '40s and '50s musicals
on the big screen ...less we forget "FUSE BOX(ALEXKID'S DUB REMIX), over six
minutes in length keeping the North Indian Hindu Wedding in full swing, the remix is
awesome...gotta love it!

Total Time: 62:33 on 19 Tracks ~ Milan 35981 ~ (2002)

I liked the movie, but I LOVE the CD. It has it all--spirited, catchy tunes that make you want to get up and MOVE; slower, more romantic songs, and exotic, cutting-edge stuff you wouldn't hear anywhere else.

This soundtrack is incredibly infectious. It will put you in a party mood every time you listen.

When I saw the film I couldn't resist dancing in my seat. Call me crazy, but the music just made me want to move. And the lyrics, they were so heady! While my head didn't know what was being said, my heart understood the soaring vocals. My favorite songs are Baraat and Aaj Mausam Bada Beimann Hai. I remember exactly when Aaj Mausam Bada Beimann Hai was played in the movie and it really fit the scene.

I knew instantly that my CD collection would not be complete without this incredibly exciting soundtrack. To tell you the truth I stayed all the way until the end of the movie just so I could hear every last note that was played!

Not all the songs featured on this album are composed by Michael! like 'Aaj Mausam Bada Beimaan Hai!' is a Bollywood calssic goldie from 1970s. 'Chunari Chunari' is a fun track from the Bollywood movie "BIWI NO.1 (1999)" . 'Aaja Nachle(1998)' is a track composed by a top Indian DJ Bally Sagoo! This is a complete 'masala' (Hindi for "Spicy") album. A complete pot-pourri of Bhangra No.s and Hindi classic movie godies , the album is very lively and entertaining. This a perfect collection of most of those songs which we Indians actually play while our weddings ocassions. Like the movie, this album is a perfect entertainer too! (Would you believe that the movie despite winning fame outside, was a flop in India!).

Listening to the CD one is reminded of the terrific scenes and the pleasure of watching the film which depicts love in all of its varied aspects. Even without having seen the film, the music stands alone as an outstanding collection of energetic, exciting, exotic sounding music. There are tunes and Indian phrases which will stay in your mind and cheer you up the rest of the day as you hum the sounds or sing the phrases. It is a great mixture of what is best about Indian music which combines the latest bhangra pop features which are highly danceable along with traditional/classic music of the past including ghazals (lyrical poetical phrases) which tell a most soulful and haunting story ...

The beauty of this album lies in the fact it is wedding music. The music is upbeat, high energy, and filled with promise and expectation: a celebration of life! By combining pop tunes and traditional Hindi music, the whole spectrum of Indian is featured on one CD. It contains a qawwali worship piece, "Allah Hu" which I first heard sung by one of Pakistan's most famous singers, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. I especially love "Aaj Mera Jee Kardana" ("Today My Heart Desires") which is from the Punjabi heartland and includes bhangra pop/rock sounds along with dance rhythms.

Another favorite is the solo and group song featured at the mehndi (the ceremony of painting henna on the hands of the bride) called "Mehndi/Madohorama Pencha" performed by Madan Bala Sindhu. It is truly a deeply spiritual expression of a heart-felt tale, it reminds the bride the new life which she is entering ... how the old life within her father's house will melt away, the past will be a fading memory. I most heartily recommend viewing the film which I loved and also buying the CD as well. I would view any film made by Mira Nair and look forward to finding a CD where Madan Bala Sindhu sings tradtional farewell songs of brides. Erika Borsos (pepper flower)

A very good compilation of Indian/Punjabi wedding songs. The songs are mostly quite upbeat. The few exceptions, the more melancholy songs, have very beautiful lyrics. I am somewhat familiar with Indian music and would recommend this CD not only to fans of Indian music, but music fans in general.

When I watched the film, I found myself drawn to return to it again and again. I realized it was the music that worked like a magnet; I was entranced. The soundtrack is so rich; think of eating a whole box of See's candy (nuts and chews), only without the guilt and calories. There is the traditional Indian fare, saturated in ethnic rhythms and the sitar. Contrast these traditional tunes with the contemporary techno treatments and they reflect the heat and sun of a day in Delhi. Then, there are the lilting and haunting melodies that evoke heavy and humid nights when it is too hot to sleep. Think about sitting on the porch at midnight while it is pouring ten feet beyond. Cheers...

This is a must for all those who saw the movie and enjoyed the music. For me, the movie brought back memories of Delhi where I grew up and the "baraats" that used to go down my street every night, with the requisite campy music played by a brass band.
Watching Mira Nair's film was like being invited to a Punjabi wedding, and better still, getting to know all the juicy details of everyone's secret lives. The music was very appropriate to the mood of the film. "Aaj Mera Jee..." was my favorite, closely followed by "Fabric/Aaja Savariya.." where the soulful voice of a wonderful Hindustani classical singer floats over the synthesizer melody....very well done.

What can I say? I love it. I'm new to Indian music and have only been listening a short while. While I find most of the music in the Bollywood films enough to tear my hair out, this soundtrack is much different. There are some danceable tracks and some lovely slower ones. There is even one tune that I would probably call Punjabi jazz (tracks 17 & 19). The score captures the feel of the movie just right. Please take a listen!