Artist:
Naresh Iyer, Haricharan, Pranavi, Nithyashri, S K Balachandran
Music Director: S K Balachandran Lyricist: Ananth Sriram Label: Vel Records Genre: Regional
Review: Katha marks the debut of music director S K Balachandran, who earlier created waves with his commendable music for four TV series that were very well appreciated. The story of Katha has been conceptualised by Gunnam Gangaraju and is directed by Srinivas Raaga. Debutant Arun Aadith and Genelia D’ Souza have performed lead roles and the film is a racy romantic thriller set in exotic locales. The album has good melodies, with lyrics by Ananth Sriram.
A refreshingly mellifluous song, ‘Thaka Thaka’ with its excellent instrumentals will arrest your senses the first time you hear it. The crème de la crème song has good lyrics, chimes and sounds of flutes, all enhancing it. Naresh Iyer excels with his zippy rendition as well.
Simple beats, mild instrumentals and good singing defines the next song ‘Ding Dong’. Balachandran has orchestrated all departments of vocals and instruments on right synchronisations. Kudos to Ananth Sriram too for his creative lyrics as they make an impression at the first hearing itself.
‘Bhayanga Bhayanga’ sounds unpleasant with loud instruments, especially percussions. Nonetheless, decorous rendition by Nithyashri and good lyrics makes the song passable. The pathos may not sound appealing when heard, but would precisely work on screens. Similarly, ‘O Kaalama’ is strikingly resplendent with Haricharan and Pranavi’s apt vocals. Haricharan intonates towards higher octaves while Pranavi maintains at the medium and lower levels. Interludes and fill-ins played on stringed instruments are amongst the best part of the song.
We have music director S K Balachandran himself winding up the album with the signature song ‘Just Play’. The song has lots of western influences and with no lyrics, is full of humming.
Katha has a mix of good and mediocre tunes that easily grasp the listener’s attention. Debutant Balachandran has laid decent efforts to deliver commendable music, giving prominence to articulation of lyrics as well. It would have been better if the third number had some mild music. On the whole, Katha is an enjoyable album.
