Lucifer is the soundtrack album to the 2019 Malayalam-language political action thriller film of the same name directed by Prithviraj Sukumaran starring Mohanlal. The soundtrack featured five songs composed by Deepak Dev and lyrics written by Tanishk Nabar, Logan, Amsi Narayanapilla, Murali Gopy and Usha Uthup. The songs were performed by Jyotsna Radhakrishnan, Karthik, Baradwaj, Gopy and Uthup.
| Lucifer | |||||
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| Soundtrack album by | |||||
| Released | 30 April 2019 | ||||
| Recorded | 2018–2019 | ||||
| Venue | Kochi, Chennai | ||||
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| Genre | Feature film soundtrack | ||||
| Length | 21:10 | ||||
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| Label | Goodwill Entertainments | ||||
| Producer | Deepak Dev | ||||
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Development
editLucifer is Dev's sixth collaboration with Mohanlal, and first with Prithviraj as a director. The film's soundtrack consists of five tracks from Malayalam, Hindi and English languages. Usha Uthup was announced to perform the titular song deciphered as the "L Anthem" which was confirmed by the scriptwriter Murali Gopy who shared a Facebook post featuring him Prithviraj, Dev with Uthup and her family.[1][2] Gopy described that the team "have always been great admirers of the way she delivers a song, in a way only she can. So, it was a great thing for Raju, Deepak and me, when Usha Didi agreed to sing a song for Lucifer".[1] Uthup performed the Malayalam version of the same track under the title "Empuraane" penned by Gopy.[2]
Jyotsna Radhakrishnan performed the item number "Raftaara" featuring Waluscha De Sousa that appears in the pre-climax scene.[3] The producers wanted playback singers from the Hindi film industry to perform the track. Dev approached Jyotsna to perform a rough version, and when she performed it, Prithviraj and Gopy liked the track and finalized on her vocals. She described numerous challenges on performing the song in Hindi as "it is a great responsibility to show justice to the language by emulating the right pronunciation". Tanishk Nabar wrote the song after multiple revisions who was satisfied with Jyotsna's rendition.[4]
Dev re-arranged and programmed the patriotic song "Varika Varika Sahajare", originally composed by G. Devarajan and written by Amsi Narayanapilla during the Salt March in 1930s.[5] This version was sung by Gopy.[5][6] The film's original score and songs were recorded at Dev's Wonderland studio in Kochi and Sound Tech in Chennai, with Arjun Muralidharan being the recording engineer and the album was mixed by Shadab Rayeen at New Edge Studios in Mumbai, and mastered by Gethin John and Donal Whelan at Haford Mastering in London.[7]
Release
editThe first song from the film, the patriotic song "Varika Varika Sahajare" was released as a lyric video on 23 March 2019.[5][8] The lyrical video for the second song "Kadavule Pole" was released on 30 March.[9] The third song "Raftaara" sung by Jyotsna and written by Tanishk Nabar was released on 7 April.[10] The fourth song "Empuraane" was released as a lyric video on 13 April. The fifth track "L Anthem" was released along with the soundtrack on 30 April.[7]
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Lyrics | Singer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Raftaara" | Tanishk Nabar | Jyotsna Radhakrishnan | 6:16 |
| 2. | "Kadavule Pole" | Logan | Karthik, Bharadwaj | 3:24 |
| 3. | "Varika Varika" | Amsi Narayanapilla | Murali Gopy | 4:30 |
| 4. | "Empuraane" | Murali Gopy | Usha Uthup | 3:29 |
| 5. | "L Anthem" | Usha Uthup | Usha Uthup | 3:00 |
| Total length: | 21:10 | |||
Reception
editCritics highlighted the background score being overused and felt repetitive, although the songs were categorised as decent. S. Sethuraman of Film Companion South felt that the music being "jarring" and described it as a "letdown".[11] Sowmya Rajendran of The News Minute felt it as "loud" and "intruding".[12] Sanjith Sidhardhan of The Times of India wrote "Deepak Dev's music could very well be another character in the film, entering the fray and heightening the thrill element at places. However, overuse of the background score becomes jarring at times too and takes away from the viewing experience."[13] Gautham S. of Deccan Chronicle however said that the music complimented the "mass feel of the film".[14]
While the song "Raftaara" was praised by listeners, critics felt that the song being "misplaced" and "poorly choreographed".[11] Devika K. of The Week felt the visual depiction of the song being problematic as certain parts of the song were picturized on the dancer's (de Sousa) body parts blatantly describing the purpose of female objectification contrast to the film's themes.[15]
References
edit- ^ a b "Usha Uthup to sing for Lucifer". The Times of India. 14 March 2019. ISSN 0971-8257. Archived from the original on 22 March 2019. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
- ^ a b Native, Digital (16 March 2019). "Usha Uthup sings 'Lucifer' anthem for the film's promo?". The News Minute. Archived from the original on 10 April 2024. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
- ^ "This Goan beauty charmed us in 'Lucifer'". Manorama Online. 5 April 2019. Archived from the original on 10 April 2024. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
- ^ "Lucifer's 'Raftaara' too is superhit, singer Jyotsna delighted". Manorama Online. 9 April 2019. Archived from the original on 10 April 2024. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
- ^ a b c "Team Lucifer reverberates with old patriotic song 'Varika Varika Sahajare'". Mathrubhumi. 23 March 2019. Archived from the original on 27 March 2019. Retrieved 27 March 2019.
- ^ Nagarajan, Saraswathy (11 April 2019). "'Really happy that 'Lucifer' has become such a massive hit': Murali Gopy". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 25 August 2022. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
- ^ a b Lucifer Audio Jukebox | Mohanlal | Prithviraj Sukumaran | Deepak Dev | Antony Perumbavoor. Goodwill Entertainments. 30 April 2019. Archived from the original on 20 June 2023. Retrieved 10 April 2024 – via YouTube.
- ^ "'Lucifer': Makers revive 'Amsi Narayana Pillai's 'Varika Varika Sahajare' song for the Mohanlal starrer". The Times of India. 23 March 2019. ISSN 0971-8257. Archived from the original on 28 March 2019. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
- ^ Jayaram, Deepika (30 March 2019). "Kadavule Pole song from Lucifer is all about Mohanlal's swag". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 24 September 2023. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
- ^ "'Raftaara' song from Mohanlal starrer 'Lucifer' has gone viral on the internet". The Times of India. 8 April 2019. ISSN 0971-8257. Archived from the original on 20 October 2023. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
- ^ a b S., Sethuraman (28 March 2019). "Lucifer Movie Review: Prithviraj Strikes Gold With A Riveting Political Thriller". Film Companion South. Archived from the original on 28 January 2023. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
The music, in general, seemed jarring and was a letdown from Deepak Dev.
- ^ Rajendran, Sowmya (28 March 2019). "'Lucifer' review: An unabashed fanboy tribute to Mohanlal". The News Minute. Archived from the original on 10 April 2024. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
- ^ Sidhardhan, Sanjith (28 March 2019). "Lucifer Movie Review". The Times of India. ISSN 0971-8257. Archived from the original on 7 September 2022. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
- ^ S., Gautham (30 March 2019). "Lucifer movie review: Lal steals the show". Deccan Chronicle. Archived from the original on 12 February 2022. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
- ^ K., Devika (1 May 2019). "Lucifer: Was the song Raftaara misogynistic?". The Week. Archived from the original on 1 May 2019. Retrieved 10 April 2024.