Over the years many movies worldwide had left mark due to their theme which surpassed the flaws in the film. Soundtrack is one such film which injects optimism and hope even though the second half of the film has loopholes. Inspired from "Its all gone Pete Tong" Soundtrack is the journey of Raunaq (Superb acting from Rajeev Khandelwal), a small town boy who comes to Mumbai to make it big and leave his mark in history of music. With a District 9 like mocumentary set-up we are introduced to Raunaq through interview of many personalities who knew him at a personal level while others are established individuals like Anurag Kashyap, Kailash Kher, DJ Akeel and more. The movie moves in a back and forth narrative with quotes of Beethoven in between thus narrating the journey of Raunaq and how he loses his sense of hearing followed by a brave tale of light amidst darkness.
Neerav Ghosh's adaptation of Its all gone Pete Tong has its moment that touches the chord. Even though the second hour is a bit hurried it is the heart warming sequences between two deaf person and their will power to succeed that touched the chord of audience. The first hour involving lots of substance abuse and sex has been dealt with maturity never losing focus on Raunaq's character. The concept of alter-ego was brilliantly done and for a change it is not shown through the eyes' of the protagonist. The sequences are shown as if a camera is fitted in the room from where we can see a panoramic view of Raunaq's mind where the alter-ego "Johny Joker" plays a important role. Being a sound designer himself the background score of Soundtrack is brilliant. With each tone, each frequency reflecting and setting the mood for the frame it is one of the finest work in recent times in terms of background score. Even Medieval Pundits had a good understanding of the script which got reflected from the music. The use of old songs were apt and "ruka jana Na nehi" is still humping in my ear. Sanjay Roderick and Ambar Vyas did a good job in editing without complicating the narrative. Anshuman Malay's cinematography was in sync with the story. The usage of shades of Grey was appropriate when Raunaq was fighting his inner demon to bring back his hearing powers. But amidst the positives there were flaws which somehow were prominent. While the first half was moving at an even pace in a mocumentary style the second half seem to be a bit hurried and the screenplay was naive towards the climax which was more like any normal Hindi film. Yes it is agreed that the story was about the success of human will and how Raunaq (like Beethoven) creates music without hearing, but pre-climax build up could have been more matured. But then the ending was brilliant. Neerav Ghosh remained true to "Its all gone Pete tong" and let's hope that he does a better job with an original story.
Rajeev Khandel simply rocked as Raunaq. This is his third film (after Aamir and Shaitan) and he showed that he can carry a film on his shoulder. His choice of films are good and he will be remembered in the long run for the matured roles he did. In the initial reels his eye reflected his ambition, then his arrogance, his dilemma, his downfall and then his rise again – he excelled in each and every sequence. Soha Ali Khan was surprisingly good in the role of Gauri, another deaf girl who changed Raunaq's life. Generally person who are deaf by birth have speech problems and Soha enacted such a role with ease. But the mushy sequences with Raunaq didn't have that impact more because of the faulty screenplay in the second hour. Mohan Kapoor was Excellent as Charlie indeed showed a split personality like the name of his night club "Tango Charlie". Yateen Karyekar was decent as Raunaq's uncle. Mrinalini Sharma playing the role of Raunaq's model girlfriend Shonali looked hot and stunning, that's it. Manu Rishi made effective brief appearances. Anurag Kashyap in a brief appearance as him made himself noticed with his unique style of dialog delivery. Others were decent in their respective roles.
On the whole Soundtrack is not a perfect film but it should be viewed for the effective portrayal of human will against all odds. "Ruk Jaana Nahin Tu Kahin Haar Ke, Kaanton Pe Chal Ke Milenge Saaye Bahaar Ke" – this song indeed sums up the film.
