Song: Pakalonnu Maanja
Composer: Vidyasagar
Lyrics: Vayalar Sharath Chandra Varma
Singer: Balram (supported by Ustad Fayaz Khan and Vijay Prakash)
Movie: Neelathamara
Melody King Vidyasagar is one of the most underrated composers and this song is another proof of that. It’s a Hindustani-styled composition with fantastic singing by another rarely used singer Balram. Vidyasagar shows his versatility showing he can effortlessly traverse different genres of songs. It is an authentic Hindustani genre song and such songs are even rare in Hindi film music. The composers fittingly uses Sarangi as one of the main instruments in the song apart from Santoor and this gives an old world charm to the song. The first interlude portion is full of Hindustani alaaps and some fantastic improvisations by Vijay Prakash. The second interlude has a sprinkling of Santoor followed by a Sarangi piece and again with Santoor and flute. So the orchestration is minimalistic befitting such a song. A semi-slcassical song like this needs a capable singer and the choice of the singer here is excellent, its a pity that Balram does not get too many songs. Listen and be amazed!
https://gaana.com/song/pakalonnu-1