Remember the beautiful ballad styled melody Kotta Bangaru Lokam, from AR Rahman’s Donga Donga soundtrack, about a new wishful world bereft of anger, hunger and malice? Yes, I am talking about a song from the time when songs from dubbed movies, thanks to late Raja Sri, sounded so good that they demanded respect from us, not just for their arresting tunes but also for their meaningful lyrics. I always wondered why there hasn’t been a movie titled with that beautiful phrase. And here comes Dil Raju’s latest production with that title in the direction of debutante Srikanth Addala, who also handles story, dialogues and screenplay like most other debutante directors in recent times. Going that extra mile, he also writes lyrics for one song but more about that later. Charming Chandu of Happy Days, Varun Sandesh and Shweta Prasad, the girl who came up with spirited performances in Vishal Bharadwaj’s Makdee (for which she even won a National Award) and Nagesh Kukunoor’s Iqbal are the lead stars of Kotta Bangaru Lokam.

Mickey J Meyer, at the audio launch, stated that both Dil Raju and Srikanth have a good taste in music and that has helped him tremendously to deliver the goods here. Now, that tells a lot about Srikanth as a director. Where Vamsi Paidipally (director of Dil Raju’s earlier production Munna) failed with Harris Jayaraj, Srikanth succeeds to a great extent with Mickey, in choosing the right tunes. Continue -

1. Kalasalalo
A nice catchy tune bogged down a bit by director Srikanth Addala’s lyrics that at places don’t seem to gel well with the tune. Some words are sung in a hurried manner so they can fit into the tune and at some places they are barely discernable. The cheesy connection of physics with physique in the first stanza aside, his lyrics clearly bear an amateurish stamp. With multiple singers – Krishna Chaitanya, Aditya, Siddarth, Kranthi, Sashi Kiran – this number comes across as the Jil Jil Jinga [Happy Days] of this album, except this one’s a notch below.

2. Confusion
In this number about teenage filled with confusion, Anantha Sriram, on one hand attempts to profile the life of youth with trivialities like their fascination for shoes, jeans etc and on the other hand also touches upon their frivolous feelings and perplexed perceptions. Though he could have done a better job, he was perhaps asked to keep it simple so it would appeal to the targeted audience easily. But given the restrictions, the way he references girls indirectly in the second stanza, is interesting. Krishna Chaitanya and Mickey J. Meyer sing this number that’s just about average compared to other tracks here.

3. Nijanga Nenena
If simplicity and delight were two sides of a coin, then this number would be that coin, which you’d want to pocket immediately. Karthik (http://idlebrain.com/news/functions/audio-kothabangarulokam/pages/image072.html), to whom such songs are a piece of cake, doesn’t shy away from adding that extra sheen to this number with his captivating gamakaalu and rendition. When I think of violin, the first music director that comes to my mind in Telugu film music is Keeravani but Mickey adds a whole new tinge to that perception of mine in the first 30 seconds of this song that sounds like a beautiful violin concerto. Anantha Sriram’s lyrics about a guy who is young and in love, overwhelmed with disbelief upon being next to his girl, are perfectly appropriate. Sample these -

ee vayassu lO okkO kshanam okkO vasantam
pedaviki chempa tagilina chOta…pagalE ayinaa gaganamlOna taaralu chErenugaa

4. Nenani Neevani
This, my friends, is by far the best melody we’ve heard this year (while Alagake Allari Vayasa from Ankith Pallavi & Friends comes as a very close second). Be it the soothing instrumentation or the enchanting chorus or the pleasant lyrics by Sirivennela and above all the delightfully tempting vocals of Shweta Prasad, Mickey packages this soulful ditty with scrumptious panache. If this indeed is sung by the heroine of this movie, bravo girl, bravo! Except trifling goof ups here and there like the way she pronounces telistE as talistE towards the end of the song, Shweta, does an excellent job of singing the best song of this soundtrack with amazing confidence.

5. Ok Anesa
This breezy number has perky lyrics by Sirivennela about the girl’s bharosa in the guy which in turn bolsters the guy’s self-confidence. Mickey peppers this song with good bits of violin and a foot tapping rhythm. Naresh Iyer’s and Kalyani’s mellow yet sprightly vocals suit this song to the T working their charm on you right from word go. Ok anEddaamaa mari?

6. Nee Prashnalu
This is Sirivennela at his best after his recent work for Sariga and Lalijo [both from Hare Raam with music by Mickey] and also is the best song, lyrically, in this soundtrack. SPB adds life to this number with varied and right intonations at appropriate places, which needless to say, comes naturally to this veteran. With a tad staid tune, this number sounds befitting for a background song but before you dismiss it off as serious stuff, here is a taste of what Sirivennela wrote in the song–

prati kusumam tanadE anadE virisE kommAinaa
guDikO jaDakO saaganampaka untundaa?

porabaDinaa paDinaa jaali paDadE kaalam manalaagaa
oka nimisham kooDaa aagipOdE nuvvochhEdaakaa

To cut a long story short, Kotta Bangaru Lokam is an absolute musical delight by Mickey. Though the fast beat numbers hold their ground independently, they are forced to step aside making way for the melodious treats that Mickey serves us with in Nijanga Nenena, Nenani Neevani and Ok Anesa. Enough written and read! You’d do yourself a big favor by listening to this soundtrack. Go Mickey Go!

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audio reviews by Sundeep Reddy
Ankith, Pallavi & Friends
Pandurangadu, Bujjigadu, Ninna Nedu Repu & Sangamam
Kantri
Jalsa
Happy Days
Shankar Dada Zindabad
Aata
Jagadam
Sainikudu
Boss
Stalin
Amma Cheppindi
Happy
Chukkallo Chandrudu

audio reviews by Sreya Sunil
Balu
Mass
Shankardada MBBS
Gudumba Shankar
Letha Manasulu
Arjun
Naa Autograph
Pallakilo Pellikoothuru
Gharshana
Sri Anjaneyam
Arya
Naani
Nenunnanu
Anji
Varsham
Andhrawala
Kal Ho Naa Ho
LoC Kargil
Shivamani
Okariki Okaru
Boys
Vasantham
Simhadri
Donga Ramudu & Party
Oka Raju Oka Rani
Nijam
Johnny
Raghavendra
Appudappudu
Gangotri
Okkadu
Manmadhudu
Thottigang
Khagam
Eeswar
Nee Sneham
Bobby
Nuvve Nuvve
Gemini
Chenna Kesava Reddy
Okato Number Kurraadu
Sontham
Baba
Holi
Avunu Valliddaru Ista Paddaru
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Indra
Jayam
Sreeram
Kanulu Moosina Neevaye
Vasu
Santosham