A.R. Rahman is, simply put, one of the most thrillingly inventive, widely adored, and extremely prolific composers of this generation. His fortuitous partnering with director Mani Ratnam birthed numerous undeniably addicting musical gems, my favorite of which is shared here: the throbbing, kinetic masterpiece Dil Se.
Bursting out the gates with the indomitable pounding of Chaiyya Chaiyya, we’re barreling through a jungle of sweltering beats and woozy strings on an unstoppable freight train of rhythm. Angelic vocals swoop through the mix on every track, a skyward rush of male and female dancing in perfect interplay – so evocative that even without knowing the lyrics, the feeling is transmitted directly to the pleasure centers of the mind and heart alike.
Every one of these six pieces is a celebration unto itself, a massively choreographed and exotically passionate extravaganza. When this record crests its apex with the near-title track Dil Se Re, prepare for liftoff and hang on.
From the first massively echoed drum stab through the final climax of gravitational percussion, soaring vocals, Michael Jackson-esque handclaps and herky-jerky basslines, cloudbursting keys and swooning string section – honestly, excitement is a pale imitation of the words needed to conjure the overwhelming feel. Bouncing from one peak to the next, the album relentlessly works to please, and succeeds on all fronts. It simply must be heard. And that’s why we’re here.
Clocking in under 40 minutes, Dil Se is a rush of emotion and movement, passion and power. When the final notes of Satrangi Re fade out we’re left breathless and dazed, and ready to start the journey anew. Join the fun. Get on the train.
You can grab this sweet glass of paradise and drink it in via Amazon.
Optimistic Underground 
look at you, repping up A.R Rahman and some bollywood tunes. I am glad that my A.R Rahman mixtape was able to get someone into Rahman. He is a genius.
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truth, 100%. Dil Se has been my cycling soundtrack a few times alrady, too. Perfect beats for moving.
also that video totally made me want to watch the film, I think I love Ratnam’s cinematography already…
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Interesting bit of trivia – Spike Lee uses the song Chaiyya Chaiyya in the opening credits of his movie Inside Man.
check out the youtube clip here.
Even Spike Lee likes A R Rahman
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Yep I remembered that when I first got the album – it’s also apparently been used on tv shows like CSI or something.. wiki says it’s one of the most popular songs in the world! Thanks Pi, I should’ve mentioned that in the post.
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haha I think someone was just having a bit of fun with that Wikipedia article then because that track is definitely not one of the most popular songs in the world.
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ignore my last comment.
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haha why??
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ahh i didnt bother checking the wikipedia article before posting that comment. I didnt know BBC actually had a poll and that track came #9 or something.
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just saw the film again yesterday. I think you should check it out just for the cinematography alone. The cinematographer “Santosh Sivan” is one of the best in my opinion. Sivan himself went on to make a period film on King Asoka titled “Asoka”. Its probably one of my favorite bollywood films. Also you should check out the “music videos” for the other Dil Se tracks. They are amazing. So in short…
1) watch Dil Se
2) watch Asoka
3) watch Dil Se music videos on youtube if you dont end up watching the movie
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Oh yes definitely I plan on watching it soon. I did catch a good half hour of it from the beginning on when I first grabbed it months go – and the other day I was cleaning house and stumbled upon it like “oh shit, I really wanted to catch that!” so it’s up high on my list now. Thanks for reminding Pi.
And I will definitely be looking up Asoka… what’s that about? (like it really matters, right?)
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King Ashoka(also pronounced Asoka) is like the Indian Alexander. In fact he ruled around the same time as Alexander. However after fighting various battles, he realized that he is conquering corpses and not people. So he gave up war and adopted Buddhism and devoted the rest of his life in spreading Buddhism around the world.
Here is the trailer for the film
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