Raunchy is punchy

[1]

Katrina Kaif brings sexy back and how. Be it pubs, weddings, private parties, or radio stations, there’s definitely something about Sheila Ki Jawani that DJs can’t stop playing this one. Even as critics call the song raunchy, for others, it’s cool and hip. After Munni badnaam and bidi, this new sizzling number has raised the bar for item songs. Blame it on hectic lifestyles or the need to break free from monotony, youngsters tell us why raunchy is now “cool”.

“Sheila Ki Jawani has a manicured babe (Katrina Kaif), who is shaking her booty all through and I think it’s really cool. I don’t think there’s anything raunchy about the song. However, munni badnaam hui was a better number. The lyrics are a little cheap, but the song is fun,” says Sneha, a media professional.
Who wouldn’t want to catch a glimpse of the beautiful Katrina draped in a white satin sheet, grooving to the sensual beats (courtesy Vishal-Shekhar).
Subir Malik of Parikrama, whose three-year-old daughter can’t stop humming the song explains, “There has to be a good melody to grab you and any song that has good music and is marketed well, is bound to be a hit. Raunchy lyrics definitely come in later. And Katrina Kaif is a very juicy incentive for anyone to watch the song, at least once.”
And it’s not only Farah Khan’s children who are dancing on the beats of this one, but pubs in the city are throbbing with beats of Sheila ki Jawani. “I recently played this song four times at Buzz. People want to listen to more such numbers. At private parties people ask me to play it more than 10 times. People are leading hectic lifestyles and there are few takers left for house music. Youngsters just want to listen to any song with good beats. They don’t want to use their brains much. You can call them raunchy if you want, but that is what sells today,” says DJ Rahul, who plays at Buzz at MGF Mall, Saket.
What was started long back by Yana Gupta in Babuji, was carried forward by a host of other sexy women in Bollywood, and is now a rage. However, some consider these item numbers as nothing more than just skillful marketing. “There’s nothing cool about them. They are cheap numbers and get popular only because of great marketing. For instance, I don’t really like the song too much, but I find myself humming it just because I hear it a thousand times on the radio. These songs sell due to excellent branding otherwise, I wouldn’t want to be heard singing Sheila Ki Jawani,” quips Rohit Chawla, a student from Hansraj College.