“The Dawn of the Gangs” Gangs Of Wasseypur-2 Music Review

For all those who liked and relished folklore inspired tunes from Gangs of Wasseypur part-1, they know how well it worked for the film. Music was not only used to form a parallel narrative but, also, it established the tone of the film and the phases through which the characters undergo. Everyone knows that there are a lot of characters in the film, accordingly there are a lot of scenarios and situations, hence an elegant and a mammoth soundtrack was expected, already.

Primarily, part-1 captured brutal establishment and growth of an age of warring families and it was focused around Manoj Bajpai’s Sardar Khan, its music too was intentionally dramatic and primary arrangement being hardcore. Tracks like keh ke loonga, womaniya and Bihar ke lala were the highlights there, here in Gangs of Wasseypur-2, tracks are more subtle also these tracks focus on Faizal Khan, his character, mannerism, his attitude, so the most part of this album has a very post-modernist approach.  Presence of varying characters and multiple scenarios with unique colors throughout has its aftermath here, only pleasing.

Instead of talking about the album’s tracks in the chronological order, I discuss them as they come to me.

Those who have seen the Gangs of Wasseypur-2 trailer in cinemas, which played after the end credits roll in part-1, it featured a highly quirky kaala rey. Probably characterizing Faizal, physically and psychologically, this track begins with a sound from a smithy forming the initial percussion and playing the role of the beat master, when husky seductive Sneha Khanwalkar’s voice adds lyrics to the sound followed by synthesizer and violin tunes building up the bass. Singing very comfortably, this track’s very smooth playback is a mood builder. Such a track is usually a trademark characteristic of a gangster movie and Varun Grover’s lyrics picturing a dark imagination of an unavoidable reality make this track an instant classic.

The next track on my list starts with cyberpunk like electronic arrangement, until the discotheque-like music is juxtaposed to weird broken English lyrics as one would expect from a movie like this. Chicha Ledar is so awkward in its approach that it might just be the future exhaustive dance track playing at all parties you would be invited to, and you don’t have to be a trained hip hop dancer to synch your moves to this, it would rather drive those steps out of you. A breathlessly racy track and its catchy rhyming sequence there make your head sway if you are listening to it on your headphone. 12 year old Durga makes this song so more loveable the way she sings here, innocently.

A track, purely instrumental, without any lyrics whatsoever, starts like it is pulled out from a film like Step-Up 2, but the music, that begins with synthesized sounds as vocal orchestration and sounds of Indian instruments like Harmonium join in and make you wonder what this track does. Considering the film’s tone and layout, it seems this track would underscore some sort of business proceedings, business as used in underworld, Tunya, works best as a ringtone.

So do the two other quirky primarily instrumental tracks, Bahut Khoob and its 8 bit version. Beats filled with children rhymes and random sounds, the innocent voices of children, recorded seemingly when she was researching for the OST of this film, Khanwalkar implies Kashyap’s artistic indulgence in the film. Very unique tracks these two, but they don’t make their ways up to the senses of the listeners instantly, yet, if you are driving and roads are pretty deserted these tracks in your playlist would pump up the fun of riding.

How can a film like Gangs of wasseypur-2 be complete without dedicated folk song homage?  Taar Bijli, depicting situation of a crucial member of a family or how women complain about their loved ones being so lean and others don’t care, is that standout track from the folklore. Rendered effortlessly by Sharda Sinha, though I admit I have never heard before, her execution will allow you to easily absorb the fact that she is Padamshree Sharda Sinha, the lyrics seemingly depicting an irony of the situation of the people living there and no one trying to improve. Music is kept minimalistic, perhaps to enhance the impact of the lyrics. Equally good is its Hinglish paced up version Electric Piya, orchestration remains minimalistic, the way it is produced it makes you feel like it is the climax to the previous track, and then there is Electric Piya – Fused, it’s strange remix version. The transition suggests something fishy and nasty, Raskia Rani’s voice giving an authentic feel to the two “Electric Piya”s work at their independent levels.

A Qawwalli Jugalbandi track, Aabroo, filled with sarcasm and hatred while making a political statement, proves that Piyush Mishra should be asked to write Lyrics every time whenever possible, this traditionally styled but ultimately unique melody, with raunchy lines ending with Hajmola on repeat mode immediately triggers the imagination of the scene where politicians throw anything they find, on each other inside the parliament. Perhaps that is the quality of this track, also it is occasionally hilarious.

Out of the ensemble of tracks without lyrics, Perpendicular Theme is another add-on. It is raw and to some extent so brilliantly orchestrated, that the Madness seeps in to your nerves. KKL, the reworked music only production of the featured track (Keh Ke Lunga) from the previous film, is a haunting track and seems climactic and has a grand approach towards it, this also proves that Sneha Khanwalkar could also do dramatic underscoring with magnificence, though GV Prakash did the score for the film, I guess we cannot ignore Khanwalkar’s contribution anywhere.

Finally, we come to the 2 contrasting versions of the same song, perhaps the most approachable tracks of the album, Moora and Moora-Morning. The lyrics ask us to take light and so does the Music of the original track with Spanish guitar and free and easy going production building the mood. This is a track which I think, in this soundtrack, would easily find its place on the lips and tongues of its listeners. Sneha Khanwalkar’s Husky tone and Low pitched Robbie Styles make it just so easy to absorb. The Digitized Moora-Morning like Kaala Rey is another very pure and enchanting track and once again a child artist has lent his voice, 15 year old Deepak Kumar makes your heart mellow as digitally subtle arrangement progresses.

The whole album is highlighted by few unique musical characteristics, like folklore, dramatic scoring, children rhymes, post modernist pop etc.  Though tracks here are not as dramatically extravagant as Bihar Ke Lala and Keh Ke loonga, the music here is standout in its own subtle and brilliant way and not one track seems poorly done, though, in previous album there were more tracks people could easily hum, here tracks are meant to be listened, when you sit back and relax and absorb slowly and steadily, this album is a class of its own, and must not be missed by your library.

Five tracks you must listen right away: Kaala Rey, Moora, Moora-Morning, Chicha Ledar, Aabroo.

Salil Shankar

Film-maker || Technical Writer || Blogger

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