Over the years, there have been multiple Malayalam songs that were flagged by good folks on the internet and rumoured to have drawn ‘inspiration’ from other hit songs.
So we decided to pick the top 9 and check for ourselves.
Mazhavil Kothumbileri Vanna (Adwaitham)
Adwaitham had a very good soundtrack, and this is one song that was quite an earworm.
So imagine our shock when we heard
The resemblance is hard to miss.
Verdict: ‘Inspired’
Ende Manassiloru Naanam (Thenmavin Kombathu)
Benny-Ignatius received the Kerala State Film Award for Best Music for this film. And why not; this song is so catchy that gaanamela troupes were singing it for the better half of that decade.
Now while you process that information, listen to
Ithu kettittu nyangalkku naanamayi!
Verdict: ‘Inspired’
Kaliveedurangiyallo (Desadanam)
Oh, this one is all feels!
Unfortunately, it sounds very similar to
Now this one is tricky. Both Desadanam and Papa Kehte Hai were released in 1996. In fact, Desadanam was released 4 months before Papa Kehte Hai.
But suffice to say that Kaliveedurangiyallo is a much better song than Ghar Se Nikalte Hi. The lyrics and the deep emotions it conveys just steamrolls the romance of the Hindi version.
Verdict: ‘Doesn’t matter’
Njan Oru Paatu Paadam (Megham)
Remember Mammootty as Col. Ravi Varma Thampuran dancing and riding a cycle around a village singing about his love for a girl almost half his age? If not, here it is
This song should never have been made! Especially because the original was
Verdict: ‘Inspired’
Eeran Kaattin (Salala Mobiles)
Don’t you think Shreya Ghoshal’s voice was meant to sing romantic numbers?
She also sang
Maybe that’s why they sound so similar!
Verdict: ‘Inspired’
Kaal Kuzhanju (Left Right Left)
Music is meant to invoke emotion and this song does it incredibly well. It’s hard not to get pumped up and inspired by this one.
Alas! It has an uncanny resemblance to
Verdict: ‘Inspired’
So far, we’ve looked at songs that sound similar to Indian songs. But look like there are a few international candidates too!
Aaro Nee Aaro (Urumi)
This one was haunting, perfect for the historical setting of the movie.
This song was quite a hit until Loreena Mckennit filed a suit against Deepak Dev, Santosh Sivan and Prithviraj in the Delhi High Court. She accused them of plagiarising
On the 21st of September 2011, Justice Manmohan Singh of the Delhi High Court passed an ex-parte interim injunction against Deepak Dev.
Verdict: ‘Inspired’
Nenjodu Cherthu (Yuvvh)
The notes, the lyrics, the chemistry between Nazriya and Nivin, this song had it all and became an instant hit.
But with a heavy heart, we’d like to introduce you to
We did some digging around and it looks like Ekla Prothom, the album that this song is a part of, came out in 2010.
Verdict: ‘Inspired’
Madhavettanennum (Arabiyum Ottakavum)
This song is quite catchy and can come in handy if you have a ‘Madhavan’ in your life.
But unfortunately, it looks like Amr Diab met an Arabic ‘Madhavettan’ 4 years before this Arabiyum Ottakavum was released.
Verdict: ‘Inspired’
And that was our list of 9 Malayalam songs that might not be original compositions.
Do you agree with our verdict? Do you know of other songs that we should add to this list? Let us know in the comments section below.
