Milliblog Weeklies – India’s only multilingual, weekly new music playlist. Week 20:
On Apple Music | On Saavn | On YouTube
14 songs this week. All of them are available on Apple Music, while Saavn and YouTube are missing just one song – Dhruv Visvanath’s Botswana. Do remember to check out the music video of DJ Snake’s Magenta Riddim if you use the playlists on Apple Music and Saavn. The twist in the end is worth the time 
A note on the songs in the playlist.
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Ae watan, Dilbaro, Raazi & Ae watan (female version): Read the review of the music of Raazi here.
Badumbaaa (102 Not Out, Hindi): The song, composed and arranged by Amitabh Bachchan, (produced by Rohan-Vinayak) seems like a literal showcase of Big B’s character in the film! It’s a simple tune that the veteran repeats endlessly to make it addictive. The upbeat Western sound gradually moves to tapori dance mid-way, in a clever nod to the Bachchan-style music. While his own singing is great, as always, Rishi Kapoor makes up in terms of enthusiasm what he lacks in terms of singing.
Magenta Riddim (DJ Snake, EDM): DJ Snake’s latest song is a cross-cultural hodge-podge! The French DJ mixes Jamaican Riddim and an irresistible dance-hall sound. The video, shot in Telangana featuring local actors playing a firefighting troupe, has a mind-bogglingly poignant twist!
Oru Mara Nizhalil (Mercury, Tamil): Santhosh’s prelude to the song is very Chaplinesque and closer to Edith Piaf’s La vie en rose even though the film uses her Non, je ne regrette rien! The melody smoothly moves to his trademark melody in Sathyaprakash’s resonant voice, with the prelude turning into a haunting waltz.
Villupaattu (Lady Kash, Rap): Singapore-born rapper Kalaivani Nagaraj aka Lady Kash’s homage to the Tamil folk music art form Villupaattu and showcases the similarities between Villupaattu and rap, in terms of use of rhythm and story-telling. The song is heady with pulsating rap by Lady Kash, backing vocals by V.M.Mahalingam and stellar nadaswaram by Thirumurthy. The song transcends commercial parameters given Lady Kash’s interest in highlighting the plight of perhaps the oldest Villupaattu exponent alive, in Kanyakumari – Poongani Amma.
Mooga Manasulu (Mahanati, Telugu): The first song in the biographical film based on the life of South Indian actress Savitri is a spectacular showcase of the kind of sweeping sound composer Mickey J Meyer has in mind for the film. The song, powered by a superb horns section, is expansive and a wonderfully immersive melody that Mickey does so well! Shreya Ghoshal and Anurag Kulkarni are absolutely fantastic with the singing!
Mazha Megham (Krishnam, Malayalam): Composer Hariprasad R’s music for Krishnam has been impressive, based on the singles released. If Thoo Manju had Vidyasagar’ish Tamil repertoire as a reference point, Mazha Megham has Vidyasagar’s Malayalam repertoire as a reference point! In Vijay Yesudas’ delightful voice, evoking wonderful memories of his legendary father, the song is an easy winner.
Aaro Varunnathai (Mazhayathu, Malayalam): Gopi Sundar gets Divya S Menon to sing a classic ghazal in Aaro Varunnathai! The music is beautifully simple and uses a predictably nice ghazal template, featuring Dilshad Khan on sarangi and P K Anand on the tabla and dholak. The second interlude, featuring strings is so very typical Gopi, though!
Sogasaagi (Krishna Tulasi, Kannada): This song released late last year, but given the film’s release last Friday, and the full soundtrack’s release last month, it deserves a listen now. Composer Kiran Ravindranath sings the homage to the city of Mysuru himself – a homage in intent more than nativity of the sounds Mysuru could generate.
Wild, Botswana (The Lost Cause, Dhruv Visvanath): Dhruv’s sophomore effort after this 2015 album Orion is a great listen, coming on the back of his extensive travel that led to the album’s inspiration. The song Wild, featuring Ajay Jayanthi on strings, with its intimate and poignant sound is perhaps the best showcase of the album’s sound, while Botswana is the other end of the spectrum, with its infectiously fun sound!