Kapoor described the music for Animal as "multi-genre" and "versatile".[1] The soundtrack was predominantly curated by Vanga himself, who insisted Bhushan Kumar, the film's producer not to interfere during the entire process and would rework on the album if disapproved.[2] Kumar earlier provided suggestions to Vanga for adding additional music in Kabir Singh (2019); this decision was applauded by Kumar, so that the music would be independently molded with the film's narrative.[3][4] The soundtrack accompanied traditional and electronic instrumentation.[2][5] The female singers perform the songs in lower octaves, while the male singers perform it in higher notes.[2]
The soundtrack was preceded with four singles. "Hua Main" was the first to be released from the album, on 11 October 2023.[6] It was composed by JAM8 & Pritam[a] and sung by Raghav Chaitanya with lyrics written by Manoj Muntashir. The music video shows the intimate romantic relationship between Ranvijay Singh (Ranbir)[8] and Geetanjali (Mandanna).[9][10] The song had similarities with "Kaala Jaddu" from the Kartik Aaryan-starrer Freddy (2022), that was composed by Pritam.[11]
The third song "Papa Meri Jaan" was released on 14 November 2023.[16] Composed by Harshavardhan Rameshwar, who previously worked with Vanga on Arjun Reddy (2017) and its remake Kabir Singh (2019), the song was performed by Sonu Nigam and written by Raj Shekhar. The song is picturized on the relationship between Ranvijay and his father Balbir (Anil).[17][18]
Post the film and the album's release, on 6 December 2023, the song "Jamal Kudu", played during the introduction of Abrar Haque's (Deol) character, was released as a single.[25] The song was originally composed by Iran's Khatareh Group. The original Iranian song is titled "Jamaal Jamaaloo" composed by Zia Atabay in the 1950s and was re-interpreted by Harshvardhan Rameshwar.[26] The song was first sung by Kharazemi Girls High School in 1970s. Over the years, the song became popular at Iranian weddings.[27][28]
The soundtrack to Animal was released at a music launch and fan experience event held on 24 November 2023 at Mehboob Studio in Mumbai. Presented by Spotify Premium, the event saw the attendance of Ranbir and Deol,[31][32] where the former had performed "Hua Main".[33] The same day, the soundtrack was released to music streaming platforms, while it was also unveiled in Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam and Kannada.[34] The songs "Arjan Vailly" and "Haiwaan", written and performed by Bhupinder Babbal and Ashim Kemson respectively, are in Punjabi and were not dubbed in the South Indian soundtracks.[35][36] A deluxe edition soundtrack featuring nine additional songs were released on 15 January 2024,[37] while in the South Indian versions, only three additional tracks were released.[38]
The film further featured twenty-seven songs in the background score, that was released as a separate album on 23 January 2024 by T-Series.[39] In the film, just before the interval, there is an action sequence where Ranvijay (played by Kapoor) wears headphones. As he fights, the background score features the Marathi song "Dolby Walya," playing through his headphones.[40]
Trisha Bhattacharya of India Today wrote "the album becomes an integral part of the storytelling process, mirroring the protagonist's journey through love, passion, heartbreak, and revenge. Each track is a musical brushstroke, painting the canvas of emotions with precision and finesse."[44] Amit Vaidya of Rolling Stone India listed "Saari Duniya Jalaa Denge" and "Satranga" as one among their "Top 30 Hindi Film Songs of 2023".[45] "Arjan Vailly" was listed by Sukanya Verma for Rediff.com and Devarsi Ghosh for Scroll.in on their year-ender lists;[46][47] Ghosh described the song's use in the pre-interval sequence, "touches a high that the rest of Animal and the soundtrack are hard-pressed to capture".[47]
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