The chief minister directed the Ludhiana Improvement Trust to immediately transfer land to the state’s cultural affairs department for setting up the Ishmeet Sangeet Academy at Ludhiana, 100 km from here.

Ishmeet Singh, winner of the “Voice of India” singing contest on a leading TV entertainment channel in November 2007, had mysteriously died after drowning in the swimming pool of a sea resort in Maldives in July last year. He had gone for an event in Maldives.

The 19-year-old, who hailed from Ludhiana, was tipped to be a singing sensation.

The Punjab government has earmarked Rs.20 crore for the Ishmeet Sangeet Academy and the Harpal Tiwana centre for performing arts to be set up in Patiala town.

It’s time for a bundle of joy to enter poet and lyricist Gulzar’s family. His daughter, Meghna is six months pregnant and her delivery date is due in February.

According to Meghna’s friend, Meghna, who has been maintaining a low profile lately, was supposed to start her film Milte Hain this year, but has now postponed it to next year. Gulzar and Rakhee, her parents are very excited. Meghna, who is eagerly awaiting the arrival of her baby, confirmed the news.

A Paa music event planned for Children’s Day in Mumbai with Vidya Balan, Abhishek Bachchan, director Balki and composer Ilaiyaraaja, has been cancelled, thanks to the work-obsessed composer who says he cannot tear himself away from his current work in Chennai to attend the function

Confirming this development Balki says, “We had planned a formal music launch on Children’s Day in Mumbai. But Raja Sir is busy doing the background score for Paa. In fact I’m with him right now. He says there’s no way he would break his creative process to attend the function. We all respect his wishes. We’ve cancelled the formal music release.”

Now the music soundtrack of Paa simply hits outlets from tomorrow without a formal release.

For Children’s Day Balki will release a number of messages from the Big B in the voice of the child Auro for kids all over the world.

Interestingly Mr. Bachchan won’t appear in person for any of the promotional activities of Paa.

Informs Balki, “We’ll only be hearing him talk about the film in the voice of Auro in all the campaigns. He won’t be seen in person anywhere.”

"I am going to the US to perform at various places with my troupe there," Kher told IANS before leaving.

The singer, who is known for his songs "Teri Deewani" and "Allah Ke Bande" apart from others, left for the US late Saturday night. His tour began Sunday in Atlanta.

He will be performing for his fans in New York Monday followed by a concert in Washington Tuesday. Kher will repeat his performance for his fans in Washington but at a different venue. Thereafter, he will head to Toronto in Canada Thursday and will end his music tour in Boston Friday. 

EXPECTATIONS

De Dana Dan is an out and out comic entertainer due to which one doesn't quite expect a musical here. Of course Akshay Kumar-Pritam 'jodi' in the past has given chartbuster tracks in comedies like Bhool Bhulaiyaa and Singh Is Kinng earlier. Still, these films had a romantic angle to them which resulted in memorable music not just by means of item numbers but also a few soulful songs. However, when it comes to De Dana Dan, all one expects are some more Hera Pheri moments, courtesy the coming together of Akshay Kumar, Suneil Shetty, Paresh Rawal and Priyadarshan.

MUSIC

There is a very pleasant surprise in store though at the very beginning of the album with Rahat Fateh Ali Khan coming up with an extremely likeable 'Rishte Naate'. A beautiful love song which is set in a mould similar to that of 'Teri Ore' [Singh Is Kinng], 'Rishte Naate' is also elevated further due to some very good writing by Sayeed Quadri. The combination works perfectly well with English rendition by Suzanne Demello being an icing on the cake. The song's remix makes for a good club outing as well with Kunal Ganjawala replacing Rahat Fateh Ali Khan for this version and still giving a good account of himself. It is surprising that such a beautiful sounding track is being released so late in the day when the film is a mere 20 days away from release.

Mood of the album changes soon after with some groovy beats making 'Paisa' a number to jive along. This is the kind of track that doesn't necessarily make a huge impression in the very first outing but grows on you tremendously after it has been played for a few times. The way RDB writes, composes and sings this track with Manak-E and Selina has a 'desi' feel to it as well that makes it stand out in the crowd. This is the kind of track which has Punjabi folk fusion written all over it and can be heard in the North India belt. A theme song about money being the driving force behind all the acts, 'Paisa Paisa', which also has a supporting 'Club Mix' version, can be a hugely popular track provided it is bombarded on music channels 24X7.

From a romantic number and a situational outing, De Dana Dan turns on the heat with a seductive 'Gale Lag Ja'. A sensual rain track featuring Katrina Kaif along with Akshay, it has newcomer Banjyotsna coming up with the kind of rendition that reminds of Alisha Chenoy. Written by Ashish Pandit, this slow moving number with Javed Ali behind the mike is easy on ears even though it doesn't carry that chartbuster appeal to it. Hear this one (which also has a second version with Domonique Cerejo also joining the show) for some soothing times and move on to the next one in the offering.

For fourth song in a row, there is a different lyricist roped in. This time around it is Irshaad Kamil who writes a celebration track 'Baamulaiza'. Even though Mika Singh is at the helm of affairs, one really misses Neeraj Sreedhar here who would have made a difference to the final outcome. A rhythmic track that has Style Bhai coming up with his rap-n-reggae, 'Baamulaiza' (which too has a 'remix version' in the offering) makes for a fine hearing though not necessarily belonging to the hit variety. It's nice to see though that Dominique Cerejo, an erstwhile background vocalist, gets yet another number as a playback singer to her credit.

The trend of a separate lyricist for each of the songs continues with Neeraj Sreedhar writing 'Hotty Naughty' which reminds one of lesser heard 'Aage Aage Dekhe Ja' [Life Partner] in its beginning portions. An obvious item number that has been crooned by Sunidhi Chauhan and is picturised on Neha Dhupia, 'Hotty Naughty' is more fun than sensual which ensures that the proceedings do not become risqué. A passable peppy track that should look good on screen with some eye catchy picturisation, it falls under the bracket of being time pass and that's about it. Kalpana Patwari sings the 'remix version' but frankly, one would prefer Sunidhi's rendition here.

Finally comes the title track 'De Dana Dan', a Sameer written number which is sung and composed by Ad Boys. Just like 'Paisa', this one too has a chartbuster appeal to it and sees a good blend of Punjabi music with contemporary Bollywood music. Boasting of the kind of beats and energy that seldom fails; De Dana Dan is quite spirited and should make for a riotous outing on screen. The track brings a good end to the album which mostly boasts of an inherent fun element.

OVERALL

In the recent times, there have been quite some quality musical scores like Kurbaan, Tum Mile, Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani and Radio that have managed to make an impact. Most of these have a classy feel to it. In comparison, De Dana Dan has a massy feel to it with numbers like 'Paisa' and title song making a good impression. 'Baamulaiza' and 'Hotty Naughty' don't have a much future though beyond the film's run in theatres. However, if there is a track that would be remembered at least for a few more months to come, it would be 'Rishte Naate'.

OUR PICK(S)

'Rishte Naate', 'Paisa', 'De Dana Dan'

Honestly speaking I have worked with great directors till date but the quest for more will always be there. I really want to work with everybody because I think it's a process that makes you learn and your journey to success ends when you stop learning.