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Director Siddharth Anand’s last film with Yash Raj was Ta Ra Rum Pum, a title inspired by a song. The film was a disaster; the music fared better.

Anand returns. And he returns with another song-inspired film title – Bachna Ae Haseeno. While the box-office verdict of this film is still a long way off, the music is already climbing up the charts.

Bachna Ae Haseeno has Yash Raj written all over it – completely unapologetic in its mush and sheen. [IN PICS: Stills from Bachna Ae Haseeno]

The first track Khuda Jaane by KK and Shilpa Rao is a lovely, silk-smooth song, conjuring visions of the lead couple in exotic locales, flowing hair, flowers and sweeping cameras. Particularly nice is the use of tabla and guitars (Chintu), which give this track a quaint yet contemporary sound. Shilpa Rao has a voice that is not your usual saccharine sweet kind, but rich and grainy. Nice scale changes and a soaring chorus make this song a must-listen. [MUST WATCH: The Bachna title track! ]

While the filmmaker and music directors insist it is Lucky Boy, which is the ‘superhit song’ of the film, I’d rather put my money on Khuda Jaane, especially since the remix version of the song works equally well.

Nonetheless Lucky Boy, sung by Sunidhi Chauhan, Hard Kaur and Raja Hassan is a strictly formulaic dance number with a touch of Punjabi folk and Hinglish lyrics.

Aahista Aahista by Shreya Ghoshal and Lucky Ali could well be the dark horse of the album. It has some neat flamenco style guitar parts and the slow, soft melody against the fast electronic beats give it a very clubby feel. This track has a lot of potential if it receives enough airplay.

Jogi Mahi sung by Sukhwinder Singh, Shekhar and Himani Kapoor is a Punjabi love ballad, which fails to strike a chord. As does Shankar Mahadevan’s Small Town Girl. The Hinglish lyrics however are interesting and overall it’s a fun song.

Finally, we come to the most important song of the album – its title track – Bachna Ae Haseeno. It takes a lot of guts to revisit a classic, especially if it features RD Burman and Kishore Kumar. Vishal-Shekhar maintain the essence of this 31-year-old ‘youthful’ song and yet manage to add their characteristic flavour to it. The result is a track that is as feisty and naughty as it was when first heard.

For most of RD Burman’s classics, it is the prelude that give the songs a unique identity. Whether it is the guitar and tinkling glass in Chura Liya or the guitar solo in Dum Maro Dum, you can tell the songs simply by listening to the first few notes. Bachna Ae Haseeno’s opening section is one of these.

The remix too begins with the signature horn section, the absolutely full-bodied, raunchy introduction, big-band style, blending seamlessly to some very sharp rap lines by Vishal. Superb arrangement and production here. Bachna Ae Haseeno features Kishore Kumar’s youngest son Sumit Kumar, with parts of Kishore Kumar’s original song with Vishal’s rap, giving it a very crunchy, peppy, refreshing twist.

Verdict: The album is worth a listen for Khuda Jaane and the title track Bachna…. Trust me, you’d find it difficult to sit still through the song.

Rating: Three stars on five

Album Title: Bachna Ae Haseeno || Music Director: Vishal-Shekhar || Released by: YRF Music