AJNABEE

Producer: Vijay Galani
Director: Abbas-Mustan
Music: Anu Malik
Lyrics: Sameer
Starring: Kareena Kapoor, Bobby Deol, Akshay Kumar

In recent times, Anu Malik has started to disappoint. This trend started with Anu Malik giving an insipid score to the Subhash Ghai film, Rahul. Then it continued with the major disappointment, Yaadein, and the worse Lajja. Finally, Anu Malik seems to be going back to his earlier style (ie not trying to copy AR Rahman), and, for most part, succeeds in giving a pretty good soundtrack.

Mohabbat Naam Hai Kiska
This piece starts out quite slowly with an instrumental, but quickly moves on to a normal song. The music at the beginning of the actual song is quite similar to another Anu Malik song "Na Milo Humse Zyaad" from Badal, with the guitar. It quickly turns from a typical Alka Yagnik song, to a different type of Udit-Alka duet. For one thing, the beat is a lot different, being high on bass, but not loud or brash, as seen in "Yeh Raaste Hain Pyaar Ke". The singing by Udit Narayan and Alka Yagnik is good, but nothing in the league of their excellent singing in AR Rahman's Lagaan (some of the best singing I have ever heard from the two of them). The instruments used in this song aren't anything special, and end up sounding ordinary. This track ends up being an average Alka-Udit duet.
Rating: 7/10

Mehbooba Mehbooba
It seems like Adnan Sami is starting to get more popular by the day. First, his albums with Asha Bhosle become hits, then he guest composes two numbers in "Yeh Raaste Hain Pyaar Ka", and now, he's singing a song in a mainstream movie. To be perfectly honest though, his singing isn't very good. He sounds a little too drunk, and should stick to composing. Sunidhi Chauhan, who dominates this song, sounds ok, but she's been better before. The main tune is good, though not too catchy. However, the beats in the song are way too loud, and are louder than the singers, so at the end, we're left with an average song that's a little too loud.
Rating: 6/10

Meri Zindagi Mein Ajnabee
Sunidhi Chauhan appears again in this song, and sounds better, though she isn't as suited for love duets like this one. At times, she sounds like a bad imitation of Alka Yagnik. Anuradha Paudwal would've suited this song better. Kumar Sanu sounds as good as he usually does, but not extraordinary. His voice seems to be suited for Akshaye Kumar in this song. The beats are apparent, but not as loud as in the past song. The instrumentation is a lot better, and the main tune is interesting to listen to.
Rating: 8/10

Mujko Need Aah Rahi Hai
Is this another Sunidhi Chauhan song? This time she's with her 'Ruki Ruki' partner, Sonu Nigam, but she doesn't sound that great. She's apparently trying to give the effect of tiredness, but she ends up sounding bored. Sonu Nigam is his typical self, sounding suited for Akshaye Kumar. The beats in the background sound similar to the ones from "Apun Bula" from Josh. The flute used is nice, but the rest of the music is ordinary. The tune is ok. It doesn't irritate, but it doesn't catch interest either. The lyrics are probably situational, but still sound stupid. Why are they singing a song about going to sleep? Only in Bollywood…
Rating: 6/10

Dance Music
Anu Malik has yet to master the art of the instrumental track. This song has no actual singing, other than an irritating announcer, and people yelling out "Oh!" at random times. The actual music is ok, not catchy or prancy, but has enough beat going along with it to make it danceable in the movie.
Rating: 6/10

Kaun Main Hain Tum
Looking at the singer reveals an interesting combination. In addition to the normal Udit Narayan and Alka Yagnik, Bobby Deol, Kareena Kapoor, Akshaye Kumar, and Bipasha Basu join in, but only for a few lines, such as "Kaun Mein?" and "Haan Tum". None of them add or detract from this song, except for Kareena whose voice is irritating. Udit Narayan's singing is great, better than in the first track, while Alka sounds the same. The instrumentation is interesting, sounding quite different than the average Anu Malik track. The tune is quite catchy and blends in well with the music. The song ends with music extremely similar to "Jab Bhi Koi Haseena" from Hera Pheri, also with Akshaye Kumar.
Rating: 8/10

Kasam Se Teri Aakhen… Aaiya Re Aaiya
This song is quite catchy, maybe one of the most on the album. The instruments used throughout the song are more varied than in some of the earlier songs, and give a better sound. The background music has all the feel of a good dance number between four people. Sonu Nigam sounds great, along with Udit Narayan. The two should sing with each other more often, as their voices work well together. Alka Yagnik sounds like her normal self, while Sunidhi sounds irritating; trying to copy Jaspinder Narula, as well as American singers at the same time. The tune is quite catchy, though the lyrics are repetitive.
Rating: 8/10

Jab Tumse Ashiqui Maloom
A slow solo by Kumar Sanu, which is a welcome change from all the duets in this album. Kumar Sanu is good, but, once again, better has been heard from him (especially in Kasoor). The beats complement the tune nicely, and smoothly, and the music is effective. There are some tune changes in the song for a short while, but they soon revert back to the original. However, there really is nothing to distinguish this song from any other Kumar Sanu solos.
Rating: 7/10

Mehbooba Mehbooba (E Groove Mix)
A remix of the first song on the album. Truly not much to say about the song, except that this version is louder than the original, and it's even harder to hear the singer's voices. The remix is monotonous, with no real remixing done. Why was this included on the soundtrack?
Rating: 4/10

Overall Singing
The singing was average. Sunidhi Chauhan, who has had some good numbers before, disappoints with her singing, and it's a shame considering the amount of tracks she has. The other singers are just fine, but nothing exceptional.
Rating: 6/10

Overall Instrumentation and Music
This was varied throughout the album, with some songs being a little too loud and repetitive, to others having a great mixture of tune, music, instrumentation, and background beats.
Rating: 7/10

Overall
As I wasn't expecting anything from Anu Malik, this soundtrack beat my expectations. Though nothing exceptional, the songs are better than Anu Malik's past numbers, especially in Rahul. This album might be worth a listen or two, so check it out before buying it.
Overall Rating (not an average): 6.7/10

REVIEWED BY RISHI J