Music review: Sailaja Reddy Alludu

Sailaja Reddy Alludu

starring Naga Chaitanya, Anu Emmanuel and

Ramya Krishna

marks the return of the ‘mother-in-law/son-in-law’ tropes that defined Telugu cinema in the early 90s. Composer

Gopi Sundar

reunites with his Bhale Bhale Magadivoy director Maruthi for an upbeat album, in tune with the times.
The track Anu Baby comprises lyricist Krishna Kanth’s lines with many mythological references, where the guy is desperate to woo his girl after a tiff. Anudeep Dev shows his ease in lending the track the right amount of softness and energy. The track follows a single-note structure, the fusion-like element between the western and classical textures of the song lends it enough musical appeal, though it's more situational than impressive.
Mangli is undoubtedly the surprise of the album, she croons the wacky title track sprinkled with Telangana-specific references with good confidence. In a situation where a lover is torn apart from his girl by his would-be motherin-law, her rustic voice shows enough variation, you don’t mind the simplistic instrumentation, given it allows the singer to take centre-stage.
The only number where the musical quality is an equal match to the repertoire of its vocalists in this album is Egiregire. The impressive hook element draws you into the song, while the percussion instruments embellish the number. Sid Sriram gets enough scope to show why he's best in the contemporary lot with melodies, Lipsika matches him step to step here and that's no mean feat too.
Marriage-songs in Telugu numbers have always enjoyed longevity for many years, so here’s one more welcome addition to the list. Easy on the ears, if it’s Vijay Yesudas’ magnetic voice that gives a basis to Pelli Pandiri, the cherry on the cake is veteran Sirivennela Seetharama Sastry’s lyrics that capture the essence of marital union, togetherness and traditions to perfection.
Thanu Vethikina is quite a straightforward melody boosted by singer Satya Yamini's vocal presence, Sirivennela yet again captures the anxiety and the happiness of a girl finding the man of his dreams with utmost simplicity. The violin interludes are an asset to this one.
Sailaja Reddy Alludu looks another promising album for Gopi Sundar, has enough variety on its plate to strike a chord with listeners, though it isn't anything out-of-the-box.