Roshmila Bhattacharya (MUMBAI MIRROR; June 12, 2015)

Pritam Chakraborty recalls that Kabir Khan's brief to him for the Selfie le le re song, which he has composed for the upcoming Salman Khan starrer, Bajrangi Bhaijaan, was simple. The director just wanted everyone to realise by the end of the song that his hero, Pavan, is a big Hanuman bhakt.

"Three months before the shoot, I was ready with a hip-hop ode to the Lord which even had a reference to the title... Kore kore jeevan ko kar de satrangi, Nirbal ka bal hain, Sachchiyi hain sangi, Aise hain bhaiya Bajrangi," the music director hums.

But around 10 days before they were to film, it was pointed out to Pritam that the song also marked Salman's entry in the much anticipated Eid offering and his fans would want at least one bright, fun-filled dance song which couldn't be incorporated anywhere else in the script. At the same time, he'd have to follow his previous brief and ensure that this desi track reiterated that Pavan was a Hanuman bhakt.

"That made it tricky because as Pavan is a simpleton, the lines could be quirky but not edgy," explains Pritam who came up with a melody Ae le le re, le le re, ae le, ae le le, le le re which keeps repeating itself through the song even after Mayur Puri had come up with the words to fit the tune. Apna paraya jo bhi le jhappi le le re (Ae le le, ae le, ae le Ae le le, le le re) Masti ki tanki me tanik dubki le le re (Ae le le, ae le, ae le Ae le le, le le re

To bring the track to a close, during a brainstorming session, Mayur came up with the line, Chal beta selfie le le re, and everyone in the studio burst out laughing. Pritam liked the ring the words had but wasn't sure if the desi track, big on Indian drums, could use a line like that.

"It would have worked eaasily for a club song, but, I wondered if a simpleton like Pavan had even heard the word selfie?" he points out.

Kabir liked the idea of his hero taking selfies with actors dressed as Raavan, the kiddy chieftain of the Vanar sena and Hanuman because it made for interesting visuals. But Pritam had his doubts. They took their dilemma to star-producer Salman who instantly decided it was perfect.

"And Kabir justified its use by getting another character to first utter the word selfie. Pavan learns it in the course of the song and starts using it halfway through the track. And that's how we ended up with a selfie made song which got the nod of approval from even music baron Bhushan Kumar," exults Pritam.

But before that, there was one more last-minute tweak. Nakash Aziz had sung the song initially but he has a thin voice which was getting lost in the rumble of dhols that Pritam had got from Pune. So just before the song hit the airwaves, the composer made a last minute call to Vishal Dadlani. "Vishal has a powerful voice which cuts through all the music. And once I had merged in Nakash's voice with his, added a rap by Badshah, I had a picture perfect song," Pritam smiles contentedly.

He admits that this is his most difficult composition yet because unlike other Salman songs like Character dheela hai or Jumme ki raat, this one is not simply an item song or a dance track but an ode to the Lord. "With Hanumanji's blessings, I've hit a six shot and am waiting to see if it goes over the boundary with the listeners," Pritam signs off.