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Chekka Chivantha Vaanam
Soundtrack album cover
Soundtrack album by A. R. Rahman
Released	5 September 2018
Recorded	2017–2018
Studio	Panchathan Record Inn and AM Studios, Chennai Panchathan Hollywood Studios, Los Angeles
Genre	Feature film soundtrack
Length	29:26
Language	Tamil
Label	Sony Music India
Producer	A. R. Rahman
A. R. Rahman chronology
Sanju (2018) Chekka Chivantha Vaanam (2018) Sarkar (2018)
External audio Official Tamil Audio Jukebox on YouTube
Singles from Chekka Chivantha Vaanam
"Mazhai Kuruvi" Released: 1 September 2018 "Bhoomi Bhoomi" Released: 1 September 2018

Chekka Chivantha Vaanam is the soundtrack album, composed by A. R. Rahman with song lyrics by Vairamuthu to the 2018 Tamil film of the same name. The film is directed by Mani Ratnam.

The album consist of seven songs out of which "Mazhai Kuruvi" and "Bhoomi Bhoomi" served as the lead singles. Composition of the soundtrack began in December 2017. The songs in the film are symbolic in nature and are fit into the situations. Two poems from Vairamuthu's book Peiyana Peiyum Mazhai have been re-written into song lyrics, one being "Mazhai Kuruvi".

The promotional music event featured live performances of the lead singles as well as all the songs in the soundtrack album. The soundtrack album was released on 5 September 2018 under the Sony Music India record label.

Development

A. R. Rahman, Vairamuthu and Mani Ratnam began with music sessions for the soundtrack in December 2017. According to lyricist Vairamuthu, the provisions for the music and language in Chekka Chivantha Vaanam is limited because of the action genre. Rahman and his compositions were set as if they were playing "flute in a war field". For the songs in the film, Mani Ratnam had chosen two poem's from the Vairamuthu's book Peiyena Peiyum Mazhai. These poems were written into song lyrics, one of the songs is "Mazhai Kuruvi".

As per Vairamuthu, the songs in are symbolic in the nature that they talk indirectly about the situations. The track "Mazhai Kuruvi" — is about a man who was enjoying the sight of a sparrow perched on a rock on a gloomy day. As it rains, the man rushes into the comforts of his home and wonders how the sparrow would be suffering due to the downpour. However, as per the lyricist the interpretation is that the sparrow is enjoying itself and wondering why the man isn't taking delight in something nature was giving him. The music sessions were held in Goa. Rahman recalled: "At that time I was also working on my own movie production 99 Songs. I composed 10 ideas within two days and asked him (Mani Ratnam) to choose whichever he liked.” One of these compositions was the music for the track "Mazhai Kuruvi".

The song "Bhoomi Bhoomi" plays four times in a song structure and was composed as a core theme of the film. "Bhoomi Bhoomi" was not originally recorded for the film. The track "Sevandhu Pochu Nenju" highlights the mistakes a man commits whereas "Kalla Kalavaani" talks about a carefree woman. "Kalla Kalavaani" was used in the film's trailer in the portion that introduced character Ethi (Silambarasan). The song has rap lyrics by Lady Kash and addressed to and in praise of a fraud or a thief. Vairamuthu's lyrics recall the Latin phrase Veni vidi vici (he came, he saw, he conquered).

Due to prepone release date of the film, Rahman set up all his musical equipments in the hotel room and composed the original score post his live tour shows during weekends. Recording of the original score was completed by early September 2018.

Release

The promotional music event for the film was held in Chennai on 5 September 2018, with the presence of the film's cast and crew, and featured a musical stage performance by Rahman and his musical team. Out of these, the first two were released on digital music download platforms four days before the launch on 1 September 2018. The launch event was hosted by Chinmayi and Karthik.

Reception

V Lakshmi of The Times of India writes, "The album has two songs, and while the soundscape is different, the underlying emotion seems to be common — celebrating life". Priyanka Sundar of Hindustan Times who gave track by track review of the singles performed live; stated: ""Bhoomi Bhoomi" is electric and soulful at same time, "Mazhai Kuruvi", a slow number that is all about juxtaposing nature and love". Manoj Kumar of The Indian Express stated "Mazhai Kuruvi" as a happy and breezy song whereas "Bhoomi Bhoomi", contrary, lonely and heartbreaking. Mridula Ramaguda of Firstpost reviewed the first four singles of the album noted: "AR Rahman-Mani Ratnam unite for another masterful soundtrack, With many parts of the album alone, the director-composer duo manage to keep their trademark alive. the duo experiment with new genres and include a more western influence with Chekka Chivantha Vaanam's songs."

News18 in its review stated: "A.R. Rahman's score and songs work in tandem to elevate the overall mood of the film. Ratnam's use of the Bhoomi track in the climax is nothing short of a masterstroke, assuring that it's the return of the master to his glorious form." Anupama Subramanian of Deccan Chronicle wrote: "Music by AR Rahman (and lyrics by Vairamuthu) is relegated to the backgrounds, but he’s on point as ever. ARR’s BGM elevates the entire proceedings top notch." However, M. Suganth of The Times of India stated: "Rahman's score, tries a bit too hard to shoe-in songs in the place of a background score." Manoj Kumar R of The Indian Express pointed: "And what Ratnam and composer AR Rahman have done with the film’s music is a surprise. The director has not used any of Rahman’s songs in its entirety or spent money picturizing the beautiful numbers. He uses the songs in small doses throughout the film to lift up the scenes further. Rahman’s music is a character in itself in the movie." Vivek MV of Deccan Herald called Rahman's music as riveting. Nandini Ramnath of Scroll stated: "AR Rahman’s mostly forgettable tunes to the background and only Bhoomi Bhoomi soares in key scenes."

Track listing

Original

Telugu

Album credits

Credits adapted from official page of Sony Music India.

• A. R. Rahman - Music (All tracks), Arrangement (All tracks), Composer (All tracks), Vocals ("Mazhai Kuruvi")
• Mayssa Karaa - Arabic lyrics ("Hayati")
• Shivang "Shiv" Vaishnav - Rap lyrics ("Hayati")
• Keba Jeremiah - Bass guitar ("Bhoomi Bhoomi")
• George Doering - Charango, Mandolin, Ukulele ("Mazhai Kuruvi")
• Kamalakar - Flute ("Mazhai Kuruvi")
• Anupam - Orchestra Conductor (Sunshine Orchestra) ("Mazhai Kuruvi")
• T. R. Krishna Chetan - Mixing (All tracks)
• Ishaan Chhabra - Mixing ("Sevandhu Nenje Pochu")
• Suresh Permal - Mastering, Sound Engineer (All tracks)
• S Sivakumar - Apple iTunes Mastering, Sound Engineer (All tracks)
• Pawan CH - Sound Engineer, Additional Programming ("Sevandhu Nenje Pochu", "Hayati", "Kalla Kalavaani", "Praaptham")
• Karthik Sekaran - Sound Engineer (All tracks)
• Jerry Vincent - Sound Engineer (All tracks)
• Santosh Dhayanidhi - Sound Engineer (All tracks)
• Vinay Sridhar - Sound Engineer (All tracks)
• Srinidhi Venkatesh - Sound Engineer, Music Supervisor (All tracks)
• Kumaran Sivamani - Programmer
• Noell James - Music Co-ordinator (All tracks)
• T. M. Faizuddin - Music Co-ordinator (All tracks)
• R. Samidurai - Musicians' Fixer (All tracks)
• B. Velavan - Musicians' Fixer (All tracks)

Release history

References

1. "Morals vs success the core theme of 'Chekka Chivantha Vaanam', says Vairamuthu". The Hindu. 22 August 2018.
2. MK, Surendhar (8 February 2018). "Mani Ratnam's multi-starrer project titled Chekka Chivantha Vaanam; Arun Vijay replaces Fahadh Faasil". Retrieved 9 September 2018.
3. ^ Srinivasan, Ramanujam (22 August 2018). "Vairamuthu on 'Chekka Chivantha Vaanam': 'To find order in disorder is the biggest challenge in writing lyrics for a AR Rahman tune'". The Hindu. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
4. ^ Dundoo, Sangeetha Devi (26 September 2018). "A.R. Rahman on 'Chekka Chivantha Vaanam': There's mutual respect in this collaboration". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 26 September 2018.
5. "Chekka Chivantha Vaanam: AR Rahman set up studio in hotel room - in.com". in.com. Archived from the original on 26 September 2018. Retrieved 26 September 2018.
6. ^ Scroll Staff. "Listen: Crooked ambition in 'Kalla Kalavaani' from 'Chekka Chivantha Vaanam'". Scroll.in. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
7. "Melodies are immortal: The AR Rahman interview". Cinema Express. Retrieved 26 September 2018.
8. "AR Rahman Live Tour". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 26 September 2018.
9. "Chekka Chivantha Vaanam audio launch: AR Rahman says it takes him back to Mani Ratnam's Nayakan". 5 September 2018.
10. Ramanujam, Srinivasa (5 September 2018). "'Mani has gone back to his Nayagan days', says A.R. Rahman". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 16 September 2018.
11. "Chekka Chivantha Vaanam songs Mazhai Kuruvi and Bhoomi Bhoomi released". 5 September 2018.
12. "'Sevanthu Pochu Nenju' song from 'Chekka Chivantha Vaanam' unveiled". The Times of India. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
13. "Music Review: Chekka Chivantha Vaanam". The Times of India. 8 September 2018.
14. "Chekka Chivantha Vaanam music review: Bhoomi Bhoomi is electric and soulful at same time". 6 September 2018.
15. "Chekka Chivantha Vaanam songs released: AR Rahman's music gives more insight into Ethi and Varadan's lives". Archived from the original on 6 September 2018.
16. "Chekka Chivantha Vaanam music review: AR Rahman-Mani Ratnam unite for another masterful soundtrack". Firstpost. Retrieved 26 September 2018.
17. "Chekka Chivantha Vaanam Film Review: Mani Ratnam Returns to Form with Tamil Film". News18. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
18. "Chekka Chivantha Vaanam review: Mani Ratnam's drama will leave you spellbound". Deccan Chronicle. 29 September 2018. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
19. "Chekka Chivantha Vaanam Movie Review {3.5/5}: Mani Ratnam gives us a delicious twist on The Godfather with CCV", The Times of India, retrieved 1 October 2018
20. "Chekka Chivantha Vaanam movie review: A vibrant gangster drama". The Indian Express. 27 September 2018. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
21. "'Chekka Chivantha Vaanam' movie review: Mass appeal". Deccan Herald. 28 September 2018. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
22. Ramnath, Nandini. "'Chekka Chivantha Vaanam' film review: Mani Ratnam serves up revenge cold and cool". Scroll.in. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
23. "CHEKKA CHIVANTHA VAANAM - CD Audio CD Standard Edition (Tamil - A R RAHMAN)". Retrieved 22 December 2018.
24. "Chekka Chivantha Vaanam - A.R.Rahman - Sony Music - Tamil Audio CD". Retrieved 22 December 2018.
25. "Chekka Chivantha Vaanam (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) - A. R. Rahman". Amazon UK. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
26. Chekka Chivantha Vaanam (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) by A. R. Rahman, 28 September 2018, retrieved 22 December 2018
27. "Chekka Chivantha Vaanam - A.R.Rahman - Sony Music - Tamil Audio CD". eBay. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
28. "Chekka Chivantha Vaanam Audio CD". amazon.com. Retrieved 22 December 2018.
29. "Chekka Chivantha Vaanam ( 7Tracks )- A.R.Rahman - ULCD - Tamil CD - (JEWEL BOX)". eBay. Retrieved 22 December 2018.

• A. R. Rahman soundtracks
• Tamil film soundtracks
• 2018 soundtrack albums
• Sony Music India soundtracks