Chance pe Dance

Expecting too much from a soundtrack that provides a mixed bag at best is a dangerous move. But then again, is that our fault as listeners? We simply have to expect, expect, and keep expecting. While some expectations are fulfilled, some simply aren’t. The soundtrack of Ken Ghosh's latest movie, Chance pe Dance falls into the unfulfilled category where all we get is a few good dance numbers alongside some poor ones as well. And considering the music composer is Adnan Sami, who does a lot of hard work in his compositions, this album turns out to be nothing but sheer disappointment!
The opening track, “Pe… Pe… Pepein” sets the right kind of mood for the rest of the album due to it’s high tempo, electrifying beats and the sound arrangements by Eric Pillai (no wonder the song sounds Pritam-esque as Eric Pillai is used for almost all Pritam albums for sound mixing and arrangements). The chartbusting combo of Neeraj Sridhar and Saleem Shehzada has been repeated after “Aahun Aahun” from Love Aaj Kal to give this number yet another mind-blowing feel. The Pe… Pe… Pepein shenai has been repeated from Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani’s “Oh By God” (another Pritam track). Despite all the Pritam-ized elements, one cannot help but shake your body to this one. One helluva number, it also features Hard Kaur as backing vocalist, giving the right urban/bhangra touch to make it the perfect Pritam number. Wait, this is composed by Adnan Sami right? So why am I getting confused? Because Adnan Sami has ripped the style, sound arrangement – what the heck, he’s even taken Pritam’s regular sound arranger and mixer to make it sound so frighteningly similar it could be termed a copy. And considering Adnan Sami has a typical trademark in his own compositions (not seen here I might add!), it might be a very unpleasant surprise to some ardent fans of his music. But considering all that, it still is an addictive number that has potential to go right up the charts. If only Sami had experimented with his music more than take the tried-and-tested route of success!

Next comes the most publicized song of the lot, and this is also arguably the best in the whole album.“Pump It Up” , as the track is called, is not really a rock track but has a solid dance feel to it. And with Vishal Dadlani behind the mic, what can go wrong? His excellent, husky, upbeat voice sparkles on the extremely powerful beats and the electronic guitar pads, which make an excellent combo. One of Adnan Sami’s most accomplished works till date, this one shows he has it all in him to do anything he wants! Lyrics by Irfan Siddiqui are nothing to speak about, but really set the tone for the whole song as a package. The added Na…Na…Na’s actually give the track an excellent groove. The percussions and the synth samples blow the listener off and make him/her dance. Mainly a dance number, this can actually be called the unofficial theme song of the album due to the whole ‘feel’ of dance and freedom of expression captured in this whole song.
DJ A-Myth’s “Pump it Up Remix” is efficient but I personally still feel the original leaves a better impact.

Next comes a romantic track, “Pal Mein Hi” , which is an utter wash out, simply because it lacks soul. It tries to be as urbanely romantic as possible to attract the listeners, but fails miserably thereby resorting to a ho-hum track only. Shreya Ghoshal’ singing is efficient, though she is relegated to the dubious position of being an almost-backing-vocalist in this one. Unfortunately, Soham Charkraborty doesn’t put his heart into his singing, which is audible. He sounds like Shaan at times. The lyrics are okay, but the packaging as a whole is a clear thumbs down. Average at best.

Kunal Ganjawala makes a spirited attempt to raise the mediocre bound techno-driven track “One More Dance” to a passable level and he succeeds to some extent. However, the track is more or less situational in nature and should find ample support with exceedingly impressive visuals. The sound arrangement is impressive, but the punch is missing, which is certainly something that shouldn’t happen in such a dance-oriented album. The lyrics are nothing to talk about. Period.

And the singer returns yet again to prove himself in a retro styled track called “Yaba Daba Yahoo” . This one stands out as a decent situational track that actually makes you feel weirdly happy! Just like “Gori Gori” (Main Hoon Naa) made us do that small twist-jig we do when we hear such tracks, this track gives you the same effect. Kunal Ganjawala is in his best form here and you feel like letting your hair down and taking to the dance floor! The lyrics are more ‘happy’ in nature and you’ll have that grin on your face while listening to the song. All in all, this is a delicious respite from the disappointment of the previous songs. One can only hope for the rest of the album.

But – oh no! “Rishta Hai Mera” brings it all down again. The music is good in patches but the choice of singers is questionable. In fact, Tulsi Kumar doesn’t really gel well with the proceedings of the song. And she doesn’t impress either, in all honesty. Shaan, on the other hand does impress, but Tulsi neutralizes the effect Shaan brings for the song. This is plain 90s stuff that tries hard to be modern but fails.

The last original track, “Just Do It” should be accused of a short timeline, because it’s amazingly well composed (this one by Sandeep Shirodkar), well-arranged, and well-mixed. The lyrics are hilarious, and the listener will be able to visualize the proceedings on screen for this. Amitabh Bhattacharya has this incredibly creative mind to churn out such wacky lyrics (something he did for most of Dev.D). The beats are amazing, and you need good speakers or headphones to enjoy the bass in them. Simply enjoyable. How I wish it could have been longer! Too short for it’s own good.

The album ends with “Pe…Pe…Pepein…” (Duet) , which for some reason introduces Tulsi Kumar into an already decent song. Since she brings no benefits, you end up wishing they didn't make a second version featuring her in this one! Where is the charm of Tulsi Kumar that was so inevitably present in “Akele Tanha” from Darling? I request her to choose her genres wisely the next time round.

Ken Ghosh has been a music video director for as long as I know. Remember Baba Sehgal’s Thanda Thanda Paani? Ah yes, he’s a successful music video director from those wee days. And considering that, he should really have a stronger sense and taste of music than what he portrays here. Whilst the music from his previous movies, Ishq Vishk and Fida (both by Anu Malik), made me feel that he really understood the music he put into his movies, this effort puts me into doubt!

To put it bluntly, he (and the team behind the music) could NOT have taken the music of a movie such as Chance Pe Dance (with music itself a heavy influence) so lightly as demonstrated here. Also, this being a Shahid Kapoor movie (and Shahid Kapoor movies usually boast of some amazing music) disappointed me immensely. Adnan Sami, who impressed me in the past with his music for Lucky and Shaurya disappoints here. It seems Ken Ghosh’s choice of music director for such a movie has proven to be the wrong one especially given Pritam’s record. Not that Adnan Sami is a bad composer, but he is clearly best suited to different genres not dance/urban!

Overall, Chance Pe Dance is a disappointing album that could and should have been so much better.
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