Kadhalum Kadandhu Pogum is the soundtrack album to the 2016 film of the same name directed by Nalan Kumarasamy and produced by C. V. Kumar's Thirukumaran Entertainment and K. E. Gnanavel Raja's Studio Green, starring Vijay Sethupathi and Madonna Sebastian. The film's soundtrack featured music composed by Santhosh Narayanan with lyrics written by Vivek, Thamarai, Mohan Rajan, Arunraja Kamaraj and Nalan himself. The soundtrack, preceded with "Ka Ka Ka Po" as the lead single, with the soundtrack releasing on 22 February 2016 under Sony Music India label.
Contents
Background
The film's musical score is composed by Santhosh Narayanan, in his second collaboration with Nalan Kumarasamy after Soodhu Kavvum (2013). Nalan insisted Santhosh to tone down the quirkiness, a unique aspect in his music, to set the tone stand apart from Soodhu Kavvum. However, Santhosh experimented the film's music with instrumentation and harmonies for specific songs. The soundtrack emphasizes use of folk, classical and orchestral genres.
Release
The song "Ka Ka Ka Po" was released as a single on 8 February 2016 and became an instant hit upon release. The entire album released on 22 February 2016 by Sony Music India which acquired the music rights.
Critical reception
Karthik Srinivasan of Milliblog stated the album as "passable soundtrack" and stated the songs "Paravai Parandhuchu" and "Bongu Kichan" are likeable. S. Saraswathi of Rediff.com noted "Santosh's background score is just as intriguing as Nalan’s witty script with characters that touch your heart." Baradwaj Rangan of The Hindu wrote "[Santhosh Narayanan] may be getting too tied down to a sound — lush, quirky, local — but at least it throbs with life." Sify noted "Santhosh Narayanan elevates each and every scene with his soulful score."
Kirubakar Purushothaman of India Today wrote "Except Ka Ka Po, Santhosh Narayanan's songs have perfectly blended with the film that you won't realise that a song has passed by. But the BGM for Sethupathi is bit disappointing, when compared to 'Sudden Delight', which he has composed for Nalan's debut film Soodhu Kavvum." A reviewer from Cinema Express noted "Kadhalum Kadanthu Pogum established Santhosh Narayanan as" someone who could make contrasting musical worlds coexist [...] the musician was on a roll". Ashuthosh Mohan of Film Companion South listed it as one of the best albums which were quirky and appealing. "Ka Ka Ka Po" was listed as one of the best Tamil songs of 2016.