Current mood:	contemplative
Current music:	John Mayall - A Hard Road

He Rahman!
My angst against Rakyesh Omprakash Mehra rages on because the philistine thinks he's carved a masterpiece and set a precedent in Hindi films. Rang De Basanti is, at best, a study in extravagance. More than a month has passed, and viewers seem to be in awe of the stylish junk that is supposed to be a film. All this seems akin to the proverbial emperor in his 'new clothes'.

I am also reminded of Stalin's words: A million deaths is a statistic, a single death is a tragedy. In RDB, Mehra doesn't just create five chief characters, but he also bumps them all off. How am I, as a viewer, expected to react to that junk ending?

Strangely enough, RDB's music rescued me again today, reminding me that if not anything, there's always music to hang on to. I was taking a walk when 'Khalbali', playing on a car stereo, caused me to reflect on the ingredients of the track. And therein lies its magic.

'Khalbali' opens with a lovely riff emanating from the A.R. Rahman range of keyboards, and is superbly supported by percussions and beats. Critical spaces in between the lines & melody are filled with sound samples like glass shattering -- and something else that evokes a fantasy, futuristic imagery. Some eight seconds into the song, there is evidence of lateral thinking: the chorus lines appear to be too repetitive to one's liking. But, I imagine, Rahman has gotten away with it by lending some mystique to the song -- the lines are in Arabic. Remember, the song is bilingual with Arabic being the other tongue.

But the magic is yet to begin, children. When the track clocks two minutes, Rahman takes over and produces a pitch with his vocal chords that is absolutely brilliant. It is reminiscent of the beggar-children in the local trains of Bombay who sing popular tracks to make some moolah. Mind you, there is a lot of talent in their voices. Rahman brings that mastery into the song, and ably takes the song forward.

It helps no end that the lyrics are first class, thanks to ad man Prasoon Joshi. But consistent to form, Mehra botched up its picturisation in the film.

*****

Resolution for today: pick up an Eric Clapton album