Despite just two impressive movies – Nuvvostanante Nenoddantana and Bommarillu – in his repertoire, Siddharth’s fame, may have faded a tad bit, but hasn’t eroded and a particular section of Telugu cinema audience swear by his movies. Shamili, once the super child actress and last seen as Tabu and Aishwarya Rai’s sister in Rajeev Menon’s Priyuralu Pilichindi (a good adaptation of Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility), is now returning to the silver screen as a heroine. Producer Danayya, brings these two talented artistes and a new director Anand Ranga together for a movie wackily titled Oy!

Few may remember Siddharth’s inputs to the soundtrack of Chukkallo Chandrudu that brought out good results from otherwise banal Chakri. For the soundtrack of Oy!, Siddharth, assumes the role of an album producer, and extracts joyous and mellifluous music from Yuvan Shankar Raja, whose music for previous straight Telugu films Happy and Aadavari Maatalaki Arthale Verule was stellar as well.

1. Oy! Oy!
With a mellow start and a dominant percussion throughout, this title track is catchy though at times it feels that the vocals are subdued by the music. Siddharth’s zesty rendition tries to mask Chandrabose’s middling lyrics but you still can’t overlook the deliberate usage of certain words for a trifling attempt at rhyming, like the way Chandrabose uses twenty to rhyme with empty and korike (bit) to go with dorike (got). If I were to guess the female singer (whose name isn’t mentioned) it would be Priya, whose voice can be heard in Seheri (the last song in this soundtrack).

2. Saradaaga
There could be two diametrically opposite opinions about this but I think using Sunidhi’s vocals adds a lot of freshness and pizzazz to this dreamy track where the hero, in lyricist Anantha Sriram’s words, talks about fulfilling heroine’s wishful thinking. Ever-dependable Karthik gives good company to Sunidhi Chauhan in this track and both the singers together make this number more likeable.

3. Waiting For You
This one’s a heartwarming number about a guy’s heart-wrenching wait for his girl. Yuvan showcases his brilliance in the stanzas by making them addictively melodious (especially the first stanza). After RP Patnaik, Yuvan uses KK effectively here to bring out the melancholy in this track rather beautifully. Vanamali’s words catch your attention. Sample this, vidhinaina velEyana ninu gelichEyana.

4. Anukoledenadu
Though Yuvan’s orchestration in this track is impressive and the track itself is good, more or less, it doesn’t have the same appeal the other tracks possess. It’s probably because Shreya Ghoshal sounds a tad strained in high pitches though overall she does justice to this song and/or lack of novelty in Vanamali’s lyrics.

5. Povodde Prema
A poignant and pensive number with scintillating orchestration. Yuvan, sounding a bit like Rahman, takes you by complete surprise with an earnest rendition. It is in this song that you get a taste of what Vanamali is truly capable of.

6. Seheri
With some neat lyrics by Surendra Krishna and Krishna Chaitanya and exceptionally catchy orchestration, this is one track that makes you fall for it hook, line and sinker in the very first listen. While Priya sounds good, it’s Toshi that imparts right amount of sassiness to this number. However, one glitch, either with his singing or the way lyrics were handed over to him, is that in the last stanza he sings manasuki tOchindi chEsEy as manasuki dOchindi chEsEy.

To cut a long story short, Yuvan’s music for Oy! is a rhythmic joy. Peppy tracks, haunting melodies and an insanely catchy number (Seheri) pretty much sum up Oy!’s soundtrack.

Notable mentions

Kavya’s Diary -
This is the first soundtrack this year that has impressed me the most. Manu Ramesan’s foray into Telugu couldn’t have been better with each song outshining the other. Just like in Manikanth Kadri’s Avakai Biryani, melody is the hallmark of this soundtrack.
My pick: Eminently likeable Telusuko that is worded wonderfully by Anantha Sriram and sung excellently by Karthik and Rita.

Prayanam –
Vennela fame Mahesh Shankar’s latest soundtrack for director Chandrasekhar Yeleti’s latest is rather short for a Telugu movie but is impressive nonetheless. With just three songs, and two of them being bit songs, it doesn’t stop short of leaving an impact. I am now eagerly looking forward to Mahesh’s soundtrack for Suman Pathuri’s Inkosaari, which marks the debut of Pakistani singer Atif Aslam into Telugu.
My pick: Meghama sung brilliantly by Amrithavarshini.

Just Curious

• Which, according to you, is Shreya Ghoshal’s best Telugu song?
• Do you think Sunidhi was an apt choice for Saradaaga or can you think of any other singer who could have done a better job?
• None of the songs in this soundtrack are sung by Telugu singers. Now, that comes with a disclaimer that I am assuming that Priya isn’t a native Telugu speaker. Does that bother you or do you think it’s too trivial an aspect to be worried about?

Email me your thoughts at a2z_a_buddy@yahoo.com

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audio reviews by Sundeep Reddy
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Chintakayala Ravi
Kotha Bangaru Lokam
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

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