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Some music sounds good as background for a serious scene. The soundtrack of Dev is like that.
Directed by Govind Nihalani, Dev features Amitabh Bachchan in the title role. It also stars Om Puri, Fardeen Khan, and Kareena Kapoor.
Since the story revolves around the Hindu-Muslim communal discord, there is a strong influence of both communities in the album composed by Aadesh Shrivastava. So you have an intensely rendered Allahu and an equally effective Ganesh aarti, Mangalam Ganesham.
Rang deeni has a feeling of déjà vu. It sounds so much like the A R Rahman composition Rang de from Nihalani's previous release Thakshak. The good thing is, it's still extremely catchy.
Kareena Kapoor turns singer with Jab nahi aaye the tum. The song opens with Fardeen Khan's amateurishly recited poetry followed by Kapoor's careful and conscious humming. But then, as Nihalani explained in his interviews to various publications, the idea is to show a girl remembering her sweetheart in solitude, not displaying her vocal prowess.
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Another actress does the same number again. Remember Vijeta Pandit of Love Story fame? The yesteryear actress-cum-singer and Aadesh Shrivastava's wife does a good job of this gentle melody.
One of the high points of Dev's soundtrack is Nida Fazli's articulate poetry. It is fresh despite the grave nature of the songs.
Director Nihalani pens a song too the semi-classical Tujh sang bandhi dor, which relies more on Sonu Nigam's vocal talents with its minimalist arrangement.
The theme music Dev speaks consists of an Amitabh Bachchan dialogue piece and some dramatic tunes. What's interesting here is that instead of the usually high-pitched, charged Big B baritone, you get to hear him speak in a soft, mellow tone about Satya (Truth) and Insaaf (Justice).
Dev might not appeal to a regular palate. But if you are looking for something understated, go for it.