aaj phir din hua
phir armaan jagne lage
chahaten uthi, nayi,
lo seene mein benaam si,
khwahishen dabi hui
kai dilon mein kayi
kya hua kyon bhala
dil mazaron se ho gaye

reham-o-karam ho jaaye dobara
reham-o-karam ho jane do ishara
reham-o-karam ho jaye dobara
reham-o-karam ho jane do khudara

ho ho ho, hohohohohoho, ho ho
ho ho ho, hohohohohoho, ho ho

tere bina sardi mein wo garmi si na rahi
na garmi mein hai tere pyaar ki thandak
ho.. tere bina badle saare mausam kyun is tarah
kuch bolo lab kholo do ye bata
taras gayi, baras gayi ab ye nazar
de do mujhe zindagi nayi

raham-o-karam ho jaaye dobara
raham-o-karam ho jane do ishara
raham-o-karam ho jaye dobara
raham-o-karam ho jane do khudara

ho ho ho, hohohohohoho, ho ho
ho ho ho, hohohohohoho, ho ho

dekho na, tere bina ajnabi tanha main
jaise hoon, rootha hua waqt se ek lamha main
aake tu mana le
hans le hansa le
rootha rootha jee na paunga
yaadein sabhi ye poochhe har ghadi
tere kyun hain bata aansu chhalke

rehem-o-karam ho jaaye dobara
rehem-o-karam ho jane do ishara
rahem-o-karam ho jaye dobara
rahem-o-karam ho jane do khudara

ho ho ho, hohohohohoho, ho ho
ho ho ho, hohohohohoho, ho ho
ho ho ho, hohohohohoho, ho ho
ho ho ho, hohohohohoho, ho ho…

For the meaning of the song, check this post at Bollymeaning.

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We are Family starts with SEL at their romantic best, as they come up with a typical romantic Aankhon mein neendein sung by Rahat Fateh Ali Khan and Shreya Ghoshal along with Shankar Mahadevan. Irshad Kamil does no breakthrough to lyrics but adds a few beautiful touches to his words here and there. Lovable. A song for the long run.

If you haven’t heard the album yet, reduce the volume a bit before the second song starts. As Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy-KJo-Sid make Kajol kill Elvis with Dil Khol ke let’s rock, it’s clear that the song is definitely not the best thing for a music lover, but the song is certainly a tongue-sticker. Taking the video into account, I’d say Anushka does a wonderful job at being carefree while Akriti is good as a support and singer. The rocker Suraj Jagan sings this one also really well, though the negative point of the same is that he doesn’t sound casual unlike Anushka. Last word, you are anyway not likely to love it the first time, and if you’re an Elvis fan, there is no way at all. But even after all this, the song is going to be a hit, a superhit. After all, it’s Elvis’ music, and recreated by none less than SEL.

Next is the Best. Vishal Dadlani and Shankar Mahadevan come together for a wonderful Reham-O-Karam and the song just rocks. Reham-O-Karam starts with a casual solo rendering by Shankar and then suddenly it all gets rocking. From the on Vishal and Shankar sing Irshad Kamil’s lyrics to the wonderful tune of SEL and it’s Magik. Oops, magic.

Next song happens to be Sonu Nigam and Shreya Ghoshal’s Hamesha and Forever, which is kind of typical with nothing new but just some sweetness that both Sonu and Shreya have in plenty. A soft, slow number that will stick itself with the story of the movie and will keep walking at its own pace. Another one for long runs, but ma take some time to take off. As the name says, Hamesha and Forever.

The last song of the album is Sun le dua yeh aasmaan. The song is pretty slow, even from Karan and Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy’s standards and Bela Shende does a good and pretty tough job as she moves the song alone. As a matter of fact, it’s almost a theme.

The end of the album is, of course, with a theme and this time Karan keeps the privilege for the trio again after MNIK where he had given the theme alone to Strings. It’s a typical, what do I say.

Overall, We Are Family is a predictably good and sweet album from Karan Johar and Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy. Believe me I’m keeping Karan first because that matters more here. And yes, all the three words (predictable-sweet-good) don’t fit with JailHouse Rock. Still, I’m humming it.

Best of the album: I guess Reham-O-Karam, followed by Aankhon mein neendein.

BUY We Are Family from Flipkart.

It’s another matter that I didn’t like the song so much as the original one, even though I’m not a big fan of Elvis. Probably I didn’t like the voice of Anushka in the song (I hope it’s her) and for sure I don’t think Kajol and Kareena go with that rock voice right after Lata and Alka and Shreya Ghoshal. Still, if the song exists in a Karan Johar movie, it has to be a hit, and however liked or disliked by me, a song can never be not worth a hear if it comes from Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, and that too one that was made by Elvis and that when it was listed on the 500 best songs ever.

Oh, btw, Suraj Jagan sounds good in the song.

Here is the video.

and if you want, here is the original JailHouse Rock from 1957. Colorized later, of course.

Now that Karan Johar’s next product We are Family is coming, some of the details are coming out and I’m again getting a feeling that the music of the film will be same again. The typical that happens to be in his movies: one or two songs with a Sufi touch, one party song, like in a bar or something, maybe one philosophical, and quite surely a sad version, and definitely one theme. I think though that after MNIK, WAF also may have one rock-ish number as Suraj Jagan is there again.

For example, I know there is a song called Rehem-o-Karam in the movie and by the very words, I smell a Sufi song. Not that I don’t like Sufi songs but hasn’t he had enough of them in MNIK already? By the way, the song Rehem-o-Karam is sung by Vishal Dadlani along with Shankar Mahadevan. I wish Rehem-o-Karam turns out to be a rock number but chances look kind of bleak.

I know Karan knows what he is doing and I also know that the songs that come out will be wonderful, and at the same time hit, superhit. But I think this way, music loses, and at the end, we lose.

Anyway, all I can do for now is anticipate and guess, until the music release, which is reportedly scheduled for first week of August, though I was expecting end of July, guessing 28th. And all I wish is that I’m proved wrong, and KJo and SEL bring us the best music we have ever heard. Amen.

Update: Here is the detailed soundtrack of the movie.

1. Ankhon Mein Neendein – Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, Shreya Ghoshal, Shankar Mahadevan (5:02)
2. Dil Khol Ke Let’s Rock – Anushka Manchanda, Akriti Kakkar, Suraj Jagan (03:57)
3. Reham O Karam – Vishal Dadlani, Shankar Mahadevan (05:47)
4. Hamesha & Forever – Sonu Nigam, Shreya Ghoshal, Tara Waaliya (04:51)
5. Sun Le Dua Yeh Aasmaan (Theme Slow Version) – Shankar Mahadevan (03:53)
6. We Are Family (Theme) – Dominique Cerejo, Clinton Cerejo, Neuman Pinto, Vivienne Pocha (02:48)

Look at us, We are a family,
all of us, we are a family..

The movie, also starring Piyush Mishra, is due for release on 16th July, 2010 and the music release is expected soon as reportedly told by Ali Zafar.

Haathon ki rekha isse rulayen, kisi rubber se mit na paayen
Life kuch bhi deti nahin hai, badle mein leti hi rahi hai
Such a panauti, such a panauti, duniya mein kahin dekha hi nahin
He’s such a loser, He’s such a loser (o yeah)
He’s such a, such a, such a, such a loser
He’s such a loser, He’s such a loser (o yeah)
He’s such a, such a, such a, such a loser

Friday the 13th manhoos kehlaye, birthday pe iske woh bhi sharmaye
Jinx hai aisa iska muqaddar, panautiyon ka hai ye sikandar
Such a panauti, such a panauti, duniya mein kahin dekha hi nahin
He’s such a loser, He’s such a loser (o yeah)
He’s such a, such a, such a, such a loser
He’s such a loser, such a loser (o yeah)
He’s such a, such a, such a, such a loser

Loser kahin ka…

The next one, papa jag jayega, might have been a bit more long lasting but the lyrics of the song are almost crappy (should I say movie oriented?) and the song doesn’t really click at least on an stand alone listening, though Neeraj’s husky voice suits the song and the lyrics Papa jag jaayega well and he sings ‘not bad’.

Aapka kya hoga? Janaabe-aali?? Yeah, it’s the same song with an added Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy touch, which doesn’t sound bad, and Mika flavor which interestingly, surprisingly, sounds Good. Overall, the Dhanno song has quite some additions in between the old Lawaris song but more or less it’s a new version of the old song. Still, the way Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy and Mika sound, the song may well ROCK dance floors. Purists may choose to keep distance.

I don’t know what to do is something NEW because it brings up so OLD to us. Think of Sunidhi Chauhan singing like Shamshad Begum (hope most of you know her) and Shabbir Kumar cloning Mohammad Rafi in a duet. That makes Housefull’s I don’t know what to do. Did I hear Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy say “aaja tujhe heaven dikhayenge”?

Loser sung by Amitabh Bhattacharya and Vivienne Pocha is a bit different. Though deep down in my heart I felt the song was somehow inspired by Dev.D soundtrack (‘Inspired’ is Not ‘Copied’ here), I’m not gonna say that openly. According to me the song, somewhere near rap (though it’s certainly not rap) by my limited knowledge of genres, will take it’s own time but good chances people will love it in the end. The song is going to be good in the movie is doubtless.

Disappointing thing about the album, though, is that the remixes are hardly worth anything and Oh Girl and Papa Jag Jayega both have very normal (read boring) remixes. The only one I liked to some extent was the remix of I don’t know what to do, known as Shabbir’s sexy ’70s remix.

Overall, Housefull is an album made for entertainment and to a large extent, Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy have been successful in doing what they seem to be trying to do. For now, my pick is O girl while for later I am relying on Loser too. A listening of ‘I don’t know what to do’ is highly recommended. What to do later is your wish.

How enticing the song is can be guessed to some extent by the fact that before moving to the next song, I had already heard the song at least five times. And I am still humming..

Haule Haule, Dheere Dheere, aana meri baahon mein aa jaana,
pyaasi pyaasi, mar jaungi, aise mujhe aise tadpa na..
Na kar, na kar, zara bhi fikar
Mila, mila, nazar se nazar
Aaja tujhe heaven dikhaungi

I don’t know what to do, I don’t know what to do
Tauba aage kya karun
I don’t know what to do, I don’t know what to do
Tauba aage kya karun…

By the way, if you want the real Mohammad Rafi touch in Shabbir’s voice, listen to the lines:

darr jata hoon, gabhrata hoon
Aage main kaise badun
Anjaan hoon inn raahon se, parbhat main kaise chadhoon

and the last, absolute last aage kya karoon which reminds me of baabul ki duaayen. OK. May be I m going over. But listen to the song.

Dekho Raste mein is a fast, peppy, but nevertheless romantic number that sounds good with KK and Shreya singing wonderfully. Though I feel the song would have sounded better had it been a bit slower. (I have tried the song at 90% and it does sound good) Anyway a lovable song. Go for it.

The second song, Hum Tum aur Ghost, comes with the so-typical-of-him voice of Vishal Dadlani as he sings the title song with Shankar Mahadevan. The song has a likable melody but the pace again sounds overcoming the melody as Vishal-Shankar sing Hum-tum-aur-ghost at such a speed. Still, the music in the song is worth listening to and the sound manages to remain above average.

Banwre se poochhe banwariya or Baawre se poochhe baawariyaa, the third song of the album, is sung by Shaan and Sunidhi Chauhan while almost the entire team of S-E-L has been roped in to give chorus sounds and has been credited on the cover too. The song is a fun piece, and quite catchy, something like man ko ati bhaave saiyyan, though not exactly similar.

And the last original song of the album is the one I had started my album with. And interestingly, Kal tum the Yahan IS the best song of the album. Dominique in her wonderful, wonderful voice teams up with Shankar Mahadevan to give this slow, soft song with beautiful lyrics. Must listen.

Talking of remixes, the remix of the title song is quite usual, while the remix of Dekho Raste mein is quite interesting to listen to, more so because it sounds a lot like Pump it up of Chance pe Dance. The last one is the remix of Kal tum the yahan which makes the slow song a bit fast paced one. Didn’t like that one much compared to the original.

Overall, Hum tum aur Ghost is a good album with some likable and sweet songs. Though, while I liked three out of four songs (all except title), I still had more expectations from Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy after KCK. My advice, get the album anyway. If nothing works for you, put kal tum the yahan on repeat n keep listening.