One has already heard a lot about Kunal Shivdasani's Hijack and its action sequences. The film stars Shiney Ahuja in probably his first out and out action flick along with Esha Deol. The film's theme is obvious from its name, but one was not sure about its music. Thankfully one is in for a pleasant surprise as the music which has been composed by Justin Uday, with lyrics by Kumaar, is melodious. The album has four songs, of which one has three versions and the other has two versions, making it eight songs in all.
The album opens with the number called 'Aksar' which has three versions. This is probably one of the best songs in the album. It almost seems like an overkill. The first version is sung by KK, who like always, gives an impeccable performance and does full justice to the mood of the number. It is a romantic number, which has simple but very effective lyrics. KK's voice already seems tailormade for crooning romantic numbers and his version is extremely enjoyable. He sings the remixed version as well along with Joi. The remixed version has an interesting beat and is quite catchy.
Shaan is heard for the first time in the album with an unplugged version of 'Aksar'. Shaan is another singer whose voice is tailor made for romantic numbers and he gives it his distinctive touch. He sings the sad version of the song as well. By this time, one really feels that the composers and makers have stumbled onto a good thing and decided to milk it for all that its worth. The number is touching and is likely to do very well. Shaan's unplugged version is much slower that KK's version but is probably just as appealing.
The second number of the album 'Dekh Dekh' is sung by Sunidhi Chauhan, Suraj Jagan and Joi. This has a remixed version as well. The number is more of Sunidhi's song. She dominates the proceedings with Suraj hardly getting a chance to do his bit. He gives a very guttural rendition in this song which is the ubiquitous dance number of the film. Sunidhi is in full form and gives her trademark full throated performance. The remixed version also has Sunidhi sharing space with Joi. The remix has an interesting beat.
The real dark horse in the album is the next number of the album called 'Koi Na Jaane' sung by KK and Shilpa Rao. This is a pensive number and when KK sings it, it almost seems like he is thinking aloud, musically, about life and love. Extremely well written, KK's rendition really raises the level of the song. The music is just perfect for this number, with the composers preferring to go for a light touch and allowing KK's vocals to do the rest. The number opens with a sort of improvised alaap sung by Shilpa Rao of the husky vocals. She makes her presence felt later in the number as well. But it is KK who takes over and weaves magic with his moody voice. Truly the hidden gem in this album.
The last number of this album is called 'The Theme of Hijack sung by Suraj Jagan and Uday. The number is sung half in English and half in Hindi. Suraj does the honours in English and comes into his own with this number. Uday proves to be a good foil for him in Hindi. Suraj, with a voice honed on rock numbers, gives a powerfully charged performance.
Despite being an action thriller, Hijack's composers have created some really good music. It is good mix of melody, rhythm, good lyrics, and some very good singing. This music which calls for repeated hearing.
