I (soundtrack)

I: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

Digital Soundtrack Cover Art
Soundtrack album by A.R.Rahman
Released 15 September 2014 (Original)
29 December 2014 (Hindi)
30 December 2014 (Telugu)
Recorded 2012—2014
Panchathan Record Inn and AM Studios, Chennai
Panchathan Hollywood Studios, Los Angeles
Length 33:56
Language
Label
Producer A.R.Rahman
A.R.Rahman chronology
Kaaviya Thalaivan
(2014)		 I
(2014)		 Lingaa
(2014)

I is the soundtrack album to the 2015 Indian romantic thriller film of the same name written and directed by S. Shankar. A. R. Rahman had composed the original songs and background score for the film.[1] The album consists of seven tracks, which include a remix and a reprise.

Recording of the songs began in 2012 and was completed by 2014. Songs in the film vary in genre like EDM, bhangra, opera, urban. The original and Hindi version of the soundtrack has youth oriented voices. The original version of the album was released on 9 September 2014.[2]

The audio was launched at a grand function with Arnold Schwarzenegger as the Chief Guest. The Hindi version of the album was released at a promotional event held in PVR, Mumbai on 29 December 2014. The Telugu version of the album was released digitally a day later.

The soundtrack as well as the score received a very positive critical reception and it was declared one of the top twenty best selling albums of 2014 by iTunes India. At the 2016 Filmfare Awards, A. R. Rahman won the Filmfare Award for Best Music Director whereas lyricist Madhan Karky won Filmfare Award for Best Lyricist for his lyrics to the song "Pookkalae Sattru Oyivedungal". Shreya Ghoshal was nominated for the same track under Filmfare Award for Best Female Playback Singer. Lyricist Kabilan was nominated for Filmfare Award for Best Lyricist for the track "Ennodu Nee Irundhaal". However, Sid Sriram won the Filmfare Award for Best Male Playback Singer for the song.[3]

Development

A. R. Rahman was selected to compose the original songs and background score for the film.[4] In early July 2012, singer Vijay Prakash recorded the track "Pareshanayya" (Telugu version of "Mersalayitten").[5] In January 2013, the song "Aila Aila" was recorded. Karky called it as the "most challenging song" he had ever worked on.[6] As some part of the film's story is about modeling, his team created a compilation of six-seven commercials that play to this song. According to Karky, "The lyrics of Aila Aila was the most difficult to pen as each line will have two different meanings, one is what you hear and one is what you are going to watch on the screen".[7][8] The five and a half minute track blends genres like pop, bhangra, opéra comique elements and electronic beats.[9] In an interview with The Hindu, S. Shankar stated that he wanted unusual music for I with extensive experimentation. He called the experimentation most evident in this track especially the operatic part. The song slightly touches underlying feeling of romance.[10] Portions of the track "Ennodu Nee Irundhaal" sung only by Sunitha Sarathy were recorded on 14 February 2013.[11] Rahman was supposed to have sung "Ennodu Nee Irundhaal" but chose Sid Sriram because the latter sang it well and Rahman felt that Sriram didn't earn the deserving recognition through track "Adiye" from Kadal, thus gave a second opportunity.[12] Lyricist Madhan Karky's third song in the film was recorded by mid – September 2013.[13] In May 2014, Rahman through his bulletin board system of Reddit stated that the film songs have more youth-oriented voices.[14] The track "Mersalaayiten" was recorded by Anirudh Ravichander and Neeti Mohan in the span of July – August 2014.[15][16] On 4 July 2014, the recording of all the songs for both the versions – the original Tamil version and the dubbed Telugu version were completed.[17][18] Pravin Mani was involved in post-production of the album for two months. He was recruited for the work of recording ancillaries and corrections.[19] Madhan Karky explained the meanings of the Tamil words he had used in the song "Ladio" on his Twitter page.[20]

Release

On 24 March 2014, Sony Music India acquired the audio rights of the film.[21] The official soundtrack album cover of the film was released on 9 September 2014.[22] The audio launch was planned for a release in Canada,[23] but the film's producer, Venu Ravichandran, asserted that the music of the Tamil version would be released at a grand event at the Nehru Indoor Stadium in Chennai on 15 September 2014.[24] On 5 September 2014, Arnold Schwarzenegger confirmed himself as an invitee at the forthcoming event.[25] Ravichandran said Rahman would present the songs in a fashion similar to a live music concert.[26]

International bubble artist Ana Yang, wife of the 16-time Guinness World Record holder, Fan Yang, performed as part of the event. Weta Workshop artists who have worked on the film would provided the makeup for the background dancers, who delivered the performances wearing the actual costumes from the respective songs. A fashion show by the film's costume designer took place.[26] A rough cut version of the song "Merasalaayiten" leaked onto the internet a day prior to the music launch.[27]

Original version

Bobby Simha and singer Chinmayi hosted the audio launch.[28] Anirudh Ravichander, Karthik, Keba Jeremiah, Neeti Mohan, Haricharan, Natalie Di Luccio, A. R. Rahman, Amy Jackson and Vikram were part of the stage performances.[29] The team from Weta Workshop was introduced after the song "Ennodu Nee Irundhaal" was performed.[30] In addition to the songs from the soundtrack album, Rahman also performed a few tracks from his previous compositions, which were "Oorvasi Oorvasi", "Chikku Bukku Rayile", "Ottagathai Kattiko", "Muqabala", "Petta Rap", "Maya Machindra", "Shakalaka Baby", "Girlfriend", "Colombus Columbus", "Athiradi Kaalam" and "Irumbile Oru Irudhaiyam".[31]

Critical reception

Songs

The album received very positive reviews upon release. Critic Baradwaj Rangan for The Hindu called the soundtrack "wholly individual" that liberates A. R. Rahman. He felt, "The soundtrack that sets Rahman apart. At his most playful, he’s capable of synthesising sound and tunesmanship to produce music that’s the equivalent of a modern-art mural. You may not want it on your wall, but this isn’t about wanting it on your wall."[32] Sify said, "Despite the fact it is not among Isaipuyal’s greater works, ’I’ still has 2-3 numbers that are bound to get stuck in our playlists. The simpler tunes like "Ennodu Nee Irundhaal" and "Pookale Satru Oyvedungal" are here to stay while the peppy "Mersalaayiten" and the Shankar-esque "Aila Aila" are bound to get enriched by the visuals." and rated the album 3.5 out pf 5.[33] Behindwoods chose "Merasalaayiten", "Pookkalae Sattru Oyivedungal" and the track "Ennodu Nee Irudhaal" as well as its reprise as the album's picks and gave a rating of 3.5 out of 5, concluding that "Rahman & Shankar are back to doing what they do best, churn out chart busters !"[34] Vipin of Music Aloud stated, "Three winning songs in a half-and-half soundtrack from A R Rahman. Still would rate in the lower half of the ARR-Shankar repertory".[35] However, he called "Pookkalae Sattru Oyivedungal" as "the best of the soundtrack, a charming melody", and gave the album a rating of 8 out of 10.[35] [36]

Background score

Writing the critical reception for Firstpost, Latha Srinivasan stated, "Shankar has done justice to A.R. Rahman’s tunes and that’s a visual treat in the film."[37] Rachel Saltz of The New York Times wrote called it a score that 'engage ones senses', further noting, "I could easily be a silent movie—though a noisy one, with a boom-boom score by A.R. Rahman that signals at each turn how the audience should feel, and with flurries of drums, speeds the film along."[38] Gulte called, Rahman's music 'average', comparing it its standards to his previous works done for Shankar's films.[39] Nandini Ramnath at Scroll writes that the film has, "AR Rahman’s least memorable scores with background music set at the level that reads 'This has the potential of damaging eardrums.'"[40] An IANSreview mentions, "A.R. Rahman's score to the film doesn't make much of a difference but for remaining mostly soothing and melodic."[41] Subramanian Harikumar of Bollywood Life stated, "The songs, composed by Rahman, are brilliant, especially Tum Todo Na (Ennodu Nee Irunthaal) song will leave you mesmerised. A great background score from AR Rahman."[42] Suhani Singh for India Today'' writes, "Music by A.R. Rahman is top class! He has obviously given his best to match up to Shankar's vision."[43] R. Vishal at United Internet wrote, "The songs fail to allure the viewer in the way Shankar’s previous movies have."[44] For Bangalore Mirror, R. S. Prakash stated, "A R Rahman has been the composer of all of Shankar's directorial ventures, but here Rahman seems to have been in a hurry to wrap up as none of the songs are effective."[45] Surabhi Redkar for Koimoi writes, "A R Rahman’s music too does not turn out endearing and overall during the songs."[46] Writing for Mumbai Mirror, Rahul Desai praised the score in film, calling it 'throbbing hours of an operatic musical'.[47] Critic based at Bollywood Hungama felt, "The film suffers in the music department (A. R. Rahman), wherein the songs seem to be thrusted into the film's situation."[48]

Track list

Tamil

The official track listing of the original version was released by Sony Music South on 13 September 2014.[49][50]

I (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) - Original version
No. TitleLyricsSinger(s) Length
1. "Mersalaayitten"  KabilanAnirudh Ravichander, Neeti Mohan 05:04
2. "Ennodu Nee Irundhaal"  KabilanSid Sriram, Sunitha Sarathy 05:52
3. "Ladio"  Madhan KarkyNikhita Gandhi 04:42
4. "Pookkalae Sattru Oyivedungal"  Madhan KarkyHaricharan, Shreya Ghoshal 05:08
5. "Aila Aila"  Madhan KarkyAditya Rao, Natalie Di Luccio 05:34
6. "Ennodu Nee Irundhaal (Reprise)"  KabilanChinmayee, Sid Sriram 04:12
7. "Mersalaayiten (Remix)"  KabilanAnirudh Ravichander, Neeti Mohan 03:20
Total length:
 33:56

Hindi

All lyrics written by Irshad Kamil. 

I (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)[51] [52]
No. TitleSinger(s) Length
1. "Issak Taari"  Nakash Aziz, Neeti Mohan 05:01
2. "Tum Todo Naa (Male version)"  Ash King, Sunidhi Chauhan 05:49
3. "Tu Chale"  Arijit Singh, Shreya Ghoshal 05:08
4. "Aiyla"  Shiraz Uppal, Natalie Di Luccio 05:32
5. "Lady O"  Nikhita Gandhi 04:38
6. "Tum Todo Naa (Female version)"  Ash King, Bela Shende 04:12
7. "Issak Taari (Remix)"  Nakash Aziz, Neeti Mohan 03:24

Telugu

I - Manoharudu (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)[53][54]
No. TitleLyricsSinger(s) Length
1. "Pareshanayya"  Suddala Ashok TejaVijay Prakash, Neeti Mohan 05:03
2. "Nuvvunte Naa Jathagaa"  Ramajogayya ShastrySid Sriram, Issrath Quadhri 05:50
3. "Ladiyo"  ChandraboseNikhita Gandhi 04:41
4. "Poolane Kunukeyamantaa"  Anantha SreeramHaricharan, Shreya Ghoshal 05:06
5. "Ayila Ayila"  ChandraboseHaricharan, Natalie Di Luccio 05:34
6. "Nuvvunte Naa Jathagaa (Reprise)"  Ramajogayya ShastrySid Sriram, Issrath Quadhri 04:13
7. "Pareshanayya (Remix)"  Suddala Ashok TejaVijay Prakash, Neeti Mohan 03:20

Album credits

Backing Vocals[55] Nivas, Santhosh Narayanan, Deepak, Arjun Chandrasekar, Pooja A. V., Aanchal, Maria Roe Vincent

K.M.M.C. Choir conducted by Neuman Pinto for the song "Ennodu Nee Irundhal"

Personnel

Production

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Shankar's next Tamil movie 'I' hits the floor". IBNLive. 15 July 2012. Archived from the original on 13 September 2014. Retrieved 11 September 2014.
  2. ↑ "Arnold Schwarzenegger to attend 'Ai' audio launch". The Hindu. 6 September 2014. Archived from the original on 13 September 2014. Retrieved 11 September 2014.
  3. ↑ "Winners of the 63rd Britannia Filmfare Awards (South)". filmfare.com. Retrieved 2016-06-19.
  4. ↑ Ramanujam, Srinivasa (2 July 2014). "Anirudh sings for Shankar's 'Ai'". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 13 September 2014. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  5. ↑ "Director Shankar to start 'I' with Vikram". IBNLive. 22 June 2012. Retrieved 15 July 2012.
  6. ↑ "Madhan Karky's challenging song". The Times of India. 12 January 2013. Archived from the original on 13 September 2014. Retrieved 12 January 2013.
  7. ↑ "I Tamil Movie Songs lyrics". tamilsonglyrics. Retrieved 2015-03-11.
  8. ↑ "AN EXCLUSIVE SCOOP ON 'I' AND ITS MAKING VIDEO". Cinemalead. Archived from the original on 17 September 2014. Retrieved 17 September 2014.
  9. ↑ Srivathi, Apoorva (7 October 2014). "Aditya goes 'Aila…'". The Hindu. Retrieved 7 October 2014.
  10. ↑ "'I feel I have to outdo my last film'". The Hindu. 13 October 2014. Retrieved 15 October 2014.
  11. ↑ "AR Rahman records one for Shankar's I". The Times of India. 14 February 2013. Archived from the original on 13 September 2014. Retrieved 14 February 2013.
  12. ↑ "An interesting story behind I's 'Ennodu Nee Irundhal'". Behindwoods. 6 October 2014. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 6 October 2014.
  13. ↑ "Recorded my 3rd song for #Ai recently.". Twitter. 21 September 2013. Archived from the original on 13 September 2014. Retrieved 21 September 2013.
  14. ↑ "I am Academy Award winning composer A.R. Rahman. Ask me anything". Twitter. 19 May 2014. Archived from the original on 13 September 2014. Retrieved 1 July 2014.
  15. ↑ Sundar, Priyanka (8 August 2014). "Language no barrier for Neeti Mohan". Deccan Chronicle. Archived from the original on 13 September 2014. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
  16. ↑ "Kolaveri boy sings for AR Rahman in Shankar's Ai". The Times of India. 3 July 2014. Archived from the original on 12 August 2014. Retrieved 3 July 2014.
  17. ↑ "AR Rahman delivers 'Ai' tunes". The Times of India. 4 July 2014. Archived from the original on 5 July 2014. Retrieved 8 July 2014.
  18. ↑ "AR Rahman wraps up scoring tunes for Shankar's 'Manoharudu'". The Times of India. 4 July 2014. Archived from the original on 13 July 2014. Retrieved 8 July 2014.
  19. ↑ Rabindran, Dilani (21 August 2014). "MUSIC DIRECTOR PRAVIN MANI INTERVIEW - "'AI' IS GOING TO BE A KICK-ASS ALBUM"". Behindwoods. Archived from the original on 5 September 2014. Retrieved 22 August 2014.
  20. ↑ "Shankar's 'I' popularizes Tamil!". Behindwoods. 18 September 2014. Archived from the original on 18 September 2014. Retrieved 18 September 2014.
  21. ↑ "Shankar's 'Ai' is finally ready". Behindwoods. 4 July 2014. Archived from the original on 3 September 2014. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
  22. ↑ "Shankar's 'I' title look". Moviecrow. 9 September 2014. Archived from the original on 11 September 2014. Retrieved 11 September 2014.
  23. ↑ "Ai's audio launch to be held in Canada?". The Times of India. 11 April 2014. Archived from the original on 14 April 2014. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
  24. ↑ "Arnold, Jackie Chan come together for Shankar's 'Ai'". The Times of India. 26 August 2014. Archived from the original on 27 August 2014. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  25. ↑ "Arnold Schwarzenegger to attend Tamil film Ai's audio launch in Chennai?". Hindustan Times. 5 September 2014. Archived from the original on 12 September 2014. Retrieved 5 September 2014.
  26. 1 2 M. Suganth (12 September 2014). "Arnold wants to Chief Minisiter Jayalalitha". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 12 September 2014. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
  27. ↑ "'Kaththi' & 'Ai' - The Bad and The Good". Behindwoods. 14 September 2014. Archived from the original on 14 September 2014. Retrieved 14 September 2014.
  28. ↑ "Shankar's 'I' Audio Launch Photos". Oneindia Entertainment. 16 September 2014. Archived from the original on 19 September 2014. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
  29. ↑ "Shankar's 'I' Audio Launch Photos". Oneindia Entertainment. 16 September 2014. Archived from the original on 19 September 2014. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
  30. ↑ Subramanian, Karthik (16 September 2014). "Jovial Arnie teases Shankar". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 16 September 2014. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
  31. ↑ "Shankar's 'I' audio launched". The Times of India. 16 September 2014. Archived from the original on 16 September 2014. Retrieved 16 September 2014.
  32. ↑ Rangan, Baradwaj (17 September 2014). "I, A. R. Rahman". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 18 September 2014. Retrieved 18 September 2014.
  33. ↑ "'I' audio review". Sify. 15 September 2014. Archived from the original on 18 September 2014. Retrieved 18 September 2014.
  34. ↑ "'I' SONGS REVIEW". Behindwoods. 15 September 2014. Archived from the original on 15 September 2014. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
  35. 1 2 Vipin (17 September 2014). "I – Music Review (Tamil Movie Soundtrack)". Music Aloud. Archived from the original on 17 September 2014. Retrieved 17 September 2014.
  36. ↑ "I Tamil Movie Songs". coolmusicz. Retrieved 2015-02-22.
  37. ↑ Srinivasan, Latha (15 January 2015). "I review: Vikram's the only good thing about this film, Shankar has lost his magic touch". Firstpost. Retrieved 15 January 2015.
  38. ↑ Saltz, Rachel (15 January 2015). "Brawls, Biceps and Morphing Cellphones". The New York Times. Retrieved 15 January 2015.
  39. ↑ "I (AI)". 14 January 2015. Retrieved 15 January 2015.
  40. ↑ Ramnath, Nandini (15 January 2015). "Film review: In 'I', an eye for an eye makes director Shankar go blind". Scroll.in. Retrieved 15 January 2015.
  41. ↑ "'I' - big is not always great (IANS Tamil Movie Review)". IANS. Business Standard. 15 January 2015. Retrieved 15 January 2015.
  42. ↑ "I movie review: Shankar delivers a winner yet again riding high on Vikram's brilliant performance". Bollywood Life. 15 January 2015. Retrieved 15 January 2015.
  43. ↑ Singh, Suhani (15 January 2015). "Movie review: I". India Today. Retrieved 15 January 2015.
  44. ↑ "'I' Tamil movie review: Vikram's magnificent performance let down by contrived plot". India.com (United Internet). 15 January 2015. Retrieved 15 January 2015.
  45. ↑ Prakash, RS (15 January 2015). "Movie review: I". Bangalore Mirror. Retrieved 15 January 2015.
  46. ↑ Redkar, Surabhi (16 January 2015). "I Review". Koimoi. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
  47. ↑ Desai, Rahul (16 January 2015). "Film review: I". Mumbai Mirror. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
  48. ↑ "I". Bollywood Hungama News Network. Bollywood Hungama. 16 January 2015. Retrieved 16 January 2015.
  49. ↑ "Here's the official track list of Shankar Shanmugham's 'I' in A.R. Rahman's music". Twitter. 13 September 2014. Archived from the original on 13 September 2014. Retrieved 13 September 2014.
  50. ↑ "I Tamil Songs". coolmusicz.com. Retrieved 2015-02-22.
  51. ↑ "I-Hindi tracklist". Saavn. 29 December 2014. Retrieved 29 December 2014.
  52. ↑ "I Movie Hindi Songs". coolmusicz. Retrieved 2015-02-22.
  53. ↑ "I-Telugu tracklist". iTunes India. 30 December 2014. Retrieved 30 December 2014.
  54. ↑ I songs Jukebox YouTube. Retrieved. 18 January 2015.
  55. ↑ "Album Credits for 'I'". A. R. Rahman's Official Website. 22 September 2014. Archived from the original on 22 September 2014. Retrieved 22 September 2014.
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