Runima Borah Tandon

The mystery surrounding Aamir Khan's Lagaan was finally unravelled at the sneak preview of the music of the film.

The actor's first home production, Lagaan is about extraordinary circumstances thrust upon ordinary people where adversity is faced with fortitude and injustice with dignity. It also deals with the final triumph of the human spirit.

After listening to the music, one would find that a lot of meticulous planning and detailing has gone into composing the music of this period film. Each song slowly grows into you.

Javed Akhtar has written the lyrics, and the music is composed by A R Rahman. The songs are sung by Udit Narayan, Alka Yagnik, Sukhwindara Singh and Rahman himself.

Earthy, evocative and nostalgic, the music will surely transport the viewers to a different era.

Says Aamir Khan, "It is the story of a small village, so the flavour of music is folk."

Sawariya celebrates the arrival of clouds in the sky. Recalls Javed Akhtar, "You must have listened to a lot of music and songs on the rains. Now here is one song celebrating the clouds. People break into song while watching the clouds."

All the songs have been well choreographed. The Aamir Khan of Lagaan is a far cry from the earlier guitar-strumming, hip-swinging teenage heartthrob. He looks really authentic village character. His costar, Grace Singh (of Amanat fame) complements him well, as his village belle.

The music of the film is very different. Says Aamir Khan, "The tunes are difficult, but they sound sweet to the ears."

"Mitwah is an antidepressant," he continues. "If you are depressed or feel defeated in life, this song will certainly cheer you up. Masti bhi chhayegi, milke pukaro to, phulowali jo ruth ho aayegi. These lovely thoughts make you feel very good."

A R Rahman has carefully blended the music of the East with the West in this film.

Explains Aamir, "The British were ruling India at that time and so we have many foreigners acting in the film. The heroine and the villain are British. So there is a strong British influence in the film. In specific instances like a ballroom dance, we have music of that period which is evocative of the British Raj."

Says director Ashutosh Gowarikar, "The beauty of Rahman is that, after composing the songs, he fills them with such magic that when you shoot them, you are suddenly shooting beyond what you had actually planned."

The song O re chori baat mori... maine pyaar tujhse kiya has been beautifully interspersed with a rural and British ambience. A R Rahman has meticulously blended Hindi and English in this song which, surprisingly, is in sync.

"In the song, there is a British girl who learns Hindi in the film. But when she is expressing her emotions alone, she does so in English especially when it's about love. Rahman mixed a Hindi song with an English one so well that one does feel they are two different songs. He has managed to make it sound like one song," smiles Aamir.

Admits A R Rahman, "It's quite a complicated song because the hero and heroine are singing a folk song, and we had to get into a completely different melody. So we used an English phrase which would also go with the Indian audience."

Bar bar hum, jordar hum, apni jeet ho, sung by A R Rahman himself, is as powerful as his earlier song, Vande Mataram. The song effectively conveys the emotions of the characters.

Aamir Khan had insisted upon Rahman singing this song, "Only Rahman can bring out the frenzy in his voice with Baar baar hum..."

The coming together of Aamir Khan, A R Rahman, Javed Akhtar and director Ashutosh Gowarikar have created a unique musical score.

Lagaan, minus the songs, will surely leave the film incomplete because each song enhances the pace and narrative of the film. Each song brings out the rustic ambience and captures the ambience of the British Raj. Take up each song and look at them in isolation, you will realise that it is beyond the film.

Sony Music will launch the music of the film on April 6.