'ABCD' versatile album, but lacks viral tracks

Film: "ABCD - Any Body Can Dance"; Music Directors: Sachin-Jigar; Lyricists: Mayur Puri, Shankar Mahadevan; Singers: Vishal Dadlani, Mohit Chauhan, Priya Panchal, Mika Singh, Udit Narayan, Anushka Manchanda, Suraj Jagan, Hard Kaur, Raman Mahadevan, Jigar Saraiya, Azaad Hussain Ansari, Tanvi Shah, Deane Sequeira, and Madhav Krishna; Rating: ***

"ABCD-Any Body Can Dance" is said to be India's answer to globally successful dance dramas that have been capturing dance enthusiasts all over the world. What's interesting is that those international movies not only impressed with the quality of dance but also set the trend of dance music for the youth. So, with veteran choreographer Prabhudeva and musical duo Sachin-Jigar coming together, expectations run high with the soundtrack.

Lord Ganesha's good luck blessings have found much popularity in Bollywood and this album too opens with a slightly western yet devotional track "Shambhu Sutaya". Singers Shankar Mahadevan and Vishal Dadlani get together and create a track that is as eclectic as the singing duo. A jack-in-the-box opener, it makes listeners curious about other songs.

"Bezubaan" follows and the song is a roller coaster. It is not only a fresh dance track but also magically combines all the successful elements of a good track - lyrics, music and vocals. Sung by Mohit Suri, Tanvi Shah, Deane Sequeira and Priya Panchal, it is in harmonious sync with the video.

"Psycho Re" spells epic as soon as it starts. It is the coming together of the country's stalwart choreographers - Prabhudeva, Saroj Khan and Ganesh Acharya! The song is Pan-India - from southern beats to Mika's Punjabi-by-nature vocals, it is a 'bindaas' treat for the ears.

Anushka Manchanda singing, "Man basiyo saawariyo" is something that is bound to get your attention. She is smooth as butter and the fusion track is so far the best one.

Up next is the conversational "Chandu ki girlfriend". It fails to spell anything memorable. Sung by Raman Mahadevan, Jigar Saraiya, Divya Pushkarna, Sagar Kendurkar and Madhav Krishna, it is slightly confusing and fails to hit a chord with the youth in me.

"Duhai hai" made me fall in love with it in the first few seconds. Sung by newcomer Madhav Krishna, the track drops low and jumps high and keeps your ears engaged. It's a great song to dance on, hum and strum and just love it.

The Punjabi 'tadka' of the album comes in the form of "Sorry sorry" sung by Jigar Saraiya. Filled with beats and club-friendly tempo, the track may do well. Not too impressive though.

Imagine twinkle twinkle little star being played with a child's giggle and monster beats being rushed in - "Kar ja re ya mar ja re" is a track that is ruling the charts. It's a powerhouse and a must hear. Hard Kaur rapping 'Ga ga ga Ganpati' has made me go gaga literally over the song.

"Sadda dil vi tu" is one perfect way to end the album. The buildup of the song is energy-infusing and the beat is contagious. People can take tips on fresh music from the track.

The duo of Sachin-Jigar has delivered an album that has its moments. "ABCD" is a versatile album though it falls short of creating an album with viral tracks.

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