Rewind/ Hindi OTT Music 2022

BY NARENDRA KUSNUR

Some of the best popular Hindi music of 2022 was showcased on OTT platforms. A list of winners.

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Every December, we're flooded with year-end lists - 50 best Hindi film songs, 100 best international albums, 20 best rock albums, 10 best Indian indie singles, etc, etc. My own choices would be personal and subjective, with some selections likely to cause debate.

Yet, I thought I'd compile some list to show the world that I'm also pretty much around, slogging as much as everyone else compiling such lists. The subject I've chosen is Hindi OTT soundtracks, and there's a reason for that.

In 2022, this was one genre that showed a sharp rise, and promises to shape the sound of the next few years. The music of Hindi films released theatrically didn't really make a mark, and indie music didn't grow much from what it was a year ago - there were many good songs, but most got lost in the clutter.

In contrast, the number of OTT feature films and series rose dramatically, and with it one heard lots of good new music. If earlier years had stray examples like Made In Heaven, Bandish Bandits and Pagglait, 2022 saw a plethora of such releases. With the industry still recovering from the pandemic, this was the most preferred medium.

Of course, things are only beginning. A lot is yet to be done in terms of creating awareness about these releases and then marketing them adequately. Many songs listed below may still be largely unknown. But given the developments of this year, one can only hope the next few years will smoothen things out. The good thing is that most of these films have themes and scripts that give scope for good music.

Having said that, here are my five choices for OTT soundtracks of the year. Only Hindi films and series specially made for this media have been selected. I haven't included films released in theatres and then put out on such platforms. Films and multi-episode series have been clubbed as both formats are still musically nascent on OTT. The list is based on personal preference.

1 Qala - film, Netflix/ Amit Trivedi: Though there have been diverse reactions to Anvita Dutt's film per se, there has been unanimous praise for the cinematography and music. Music director Amit Trivedi banks on two singers - Shahid Mallya and Sireesha Bhagavatula, who get together on the brilliant 'Shauq'. Sireesha is excellent on 'Ghode Pe Sawaar' and 'Phero Na Najariya', and given the right breaks, should be a voice to watch out for. Lyrics are by multiple writers, with even two Kabir bhajans included. The film also has some remarkable background music by Sagar Desai, with Jake Charkey's cello being a special highlight. The main actors are Tripti Dimri, Babil Khan and Swastika Mukherjee.

2 Mukhbir: The Story Of A Spy - series,  Zee5/ Abhishek Nailwal: The series is about an Indian spy sent to Pakistan in the mid-1960s. Zain Khan Durrani, Barkha Bisht and Zoya Afroz play the main characters. Music director Abhishek Nailwal makes wonderful use of the ghazal style, with Ronkini Gupta singing two  gems ('Humse To Woh Behtar Hai' and 'Dil Behal Jaaye') and Anjali Joshi rendering 'Woh Do Kadam Ka Tha Faisla'. The songs have the typical sound and style one heard from the great Pakistani female singers. Abhishek himself sings the Sufi-folk track 'Challia' (check the lead guitar solo), the R.D. Burman-esque 'Shikaar' and the male version of 'Dil Behal Jaaye'. Lyrics are by Vaibhav Modi, To top it all, the theme music has its own signature.

3 Masoom - series, Disney Hotstar/ Anand Bhaskar: This is a slow-burn series set in Punjab, with Boman Irani, Samara Tijori and Upasana Singh playing the lead roles. The versatile Anand Bhaskar, a well-known name in indie and rock circles, comes up with a rich soundtrack, shining both on the songs and the background score. Lyrics are by Ginny Diwan. The picks are Madhubanti Bagchi's 'Jogiye', Jatinder Singh's 'Faqueera' and Romy's 'Vichda'. Poetry recited by Upasana Singh and set to music forms another highlight.

4 Monica, O My Darling - film, Netflix/ Achint: This neo-noir crime comedy thriller... phew... stars Rajkumar Rao, Huma Qureshi and Radhika Apte. Music director Achint Thakkar has created both Hindi and English songs, inspired by R.D. Burman, retro-pop, club jazz and Konkani music. Stand-out cuts are the very 70s-ish 'Yeh Ek Zindagi', sung by Anupama Chakraborty Shrivastava, Sarita Vaz's 'Love You So Much - I Want To Kill You' and Vivienne Pocha's dreamy 'Hills Of Malabar'. Lyrics are shared by Achint and Varun Grover. Overall, a funky sound, with the R.D. Burman hit 'Piya Tu' also playing in a scene.

5 Guilty Minds - series, Amazon Prime/ Sagar Desai: A legal drama starring Shriya Pilgaonkar, Varun Mitra and Kulbhushan Kharbanda, this series has only four songs, but each creates an impact. Sagar Desai composes three numbers, beginning with the title track sung by Swanand Kirkire, and Divya Kumar's 'Dil Choor Choor Hua', with its fabulous cello and lead guitar lines. There's a beauty in Cyli Khare's piercing rendition of the Marathi song 'Haqq Maangte'. The singer also composes the folk number 'Gheri Mori Patwaar'.

Just missed/ Modern Love (Mumbai): If a No 6 was requested, I'd give it to Modern Love (Mumbai), an Amazon Prime series containing different short films set in Mumbai. The soundtrack has an array of known music directors, including Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, Vishal Bhardwaj and Ram Sampath, besides some upcoming names. While too many cooks create a bit of inconsistency, some tracks stand out. Ram Sampath's 'Raat Rani', sung by Nikhita Gandhi, and Jeet Gannguli's 'Kaisi Baatein Karte Ho' by Sonu Nigam are the picks, and there's some variety in Neel Adhikari's 'The Same', featuring Karsh Kale and Kashishi. Another soundtrack that was almost there was for the Netflix series Yeh Kaali Kaali Aankhein, where Shivam Sengupta and Anuj Danait worked on the music.

Special mention/ Songs Of The River - Ganga: The only reason I haven't mentioned this in the general list is that Songs Of The River - Ganga isn't a feature film or a drama series, but a travelogue/ documentary on music director Shantanu Moitra's bicycle journey along the Ganges, from Gaumukh in Uttarkhand to Gangasagar in West Bengal. Musically, it's up with the best, with each episode having a special guest or two. Personal favourites are Sid Sriram's 'Aye Nadi Chali Kahaan' and Bombay Jayashri's 'Jaag Uthi Usha'. Other guests include Mohit Chauhan, Kaushiki Chakraborty, Ambi Subramaniam, Maati Baani and Taba Chake.

Also-rans and missed opportunities: The Madhuri Dixit film Maja Ma (Amazon Prime) had popular songs like 'Boom Padi' and 'Kachhi Doriyaan', but did not shine as an overall soundtrack. Jogi had good songs composed by Julius Packham and Sameer Uddin, but was too short. Likewise with Escaype Live (Disney Hotstar, composer: Advait Nemlekar). The films Darlings (Netflix), Looop Lapeta (Netflix), Good Luck Jerry (Disney Hotstar) and India Lockdown (Zee5) disappointed with their music, and The Fame Game had only one item song, composed by Salim-Sulaiman and sung by Sunidhi Chauhan, when there was scope for more. The Zee5 film Tadka and series Broken News and Mithya, and the Sony LIV series Tanaav ignored the musical aspect, though they were well-received. CAT on Netflix has some good Punjabi songs but again doesn't stand out in totality.

Finally, a playlist: Here are 10 favourite songs from OTT 2022, mentioned with film/ series, singer, composer and lyricist. The order is based on personal taste, which may be excellent, terrible or anything in between. Only one song has been chosen from each film or series.

1 Aye Nadi Chali Kahaan - Songs From The River: Sid Sriram, Shantanu Moitra, Tanveer Zaidi

2 Shauq - Qala: Shahid Mallya/ Sireesha Bhagavatula, Amit Trivedi, Varun Grover

3 Haqq Maangte - Guilty Minds: Cyli Khare. Sagar Desai, Jayanti Digambar Somalkar

4 Humse Toh Woh Behtar Hai - Mukhbir: Ronkini Gupta, Abhishek Nailwal, Vaibhav Modi 

5 Tafriyaan - Jogi: Neha Bhasin/ Devendrapal Singh, Sameer Uddin, Shellee

6 Faqueera - Masoom: Jatinder Singh, Anand Bhaskar, Ginny Diwan

7 Kaisi Baatein Karte Ho - Modern Love (Mumbai): Jeet Gannguli, Sonu Nigam, Sameer Rahat

8 Yeh Ek Zindagi - Monica, O My Darling: Anupama Chakraborty Shrivastava, Achint/ Mike McCready, Varun Grover

9 Kachchi Doriyaan - Maja Ma: Arijit Singh/ Anees Kaur, Anurag Sharma, Anurag Sharma

10 Hamari Atariya - Yeh Kaali Kaali Aankhein: Smita Bellur, Smita Bellur, Suhai Akhtar/ traditional