Sukanya Venkatraghavan of Filmfare gave it 2 stars out of 5, stating "The problem with Aarakshan is its meandering graph. It starts off solidly enough, keeping up a pace that will engross you until interval time except for two totally unnecessary songs. From there on, the film sheds its theme of ideals and becomes a one on one contest that, to put it really tritely, is a tug of war between two coaching classes. The dialogue is strong and opinionated and actors like Saif Ali Khan and Manoj Bajpai do everything to get you to like the film (...)Aarakshan has all the right intentions but it is a tad confusing in its stance. Of course ultimately it shows the triumph of selfless dedication to the cause of education and there is no faulting that. One does walk away with some reservations though."[12] Rajeev Masand of CNN-IBN gave it 2 out of 5 stars, calling it "a deathly boring slog" and adding: "With so much to say, the movie drags on endlessly, with over-written scenes, over-the-top emotions and dialogues that are so heavy, they end up being inaccessible. Of the performances, every actor seems to go through the motions and only Manoj Bajpai inserts some spark onto the screen. 'Aarakshan' is well-intentioned, but you can't shake off the feeling that you're trapped by a three-hour-long tirade. I'm going with a generous two out of five for Prakash Jha's 'Aarakshan'. If you don't want to be lectured, stay at home."[13]
Kaun Si Dor song lyrics from Aarakshan sung by channulal mishra,shreya ghoshal music directed by ehsaan noorani,loy mendonsa,shankar mahadevan composed by ehsaan noorani,loy mendonsa,shankar mahadevan and lyrics written by prasoon joshi
Saans Albeli song lyrics from Aarakshan sung by channulal mishra,shreya ghoshal music directed by ehsaan noorani,loy mendonsa,shankar mahadevan composed by ehsaan noorani,loy mendonsa,shankar mahadevan and lyrics written by prasoon joshi
Accha Lagta Hai song lyrics from Aarakshan sung by mohit chauhan,shreya ghoshal music directed by ehsaan noorani,loy mendonsa,shankar mahadevan composed by ehsaan noorani,loy mendonsa,shankar mahadevan and lyrics written by prasoon joshi
Mauka song lyrics from Aarakshan sung by gaurav gupta,mahalakshmi iyer,raman mahadevan,rehan khan,tarun sagar music directed by ehsaan noorani,loy mendonsa,shankar mahadevan composed by ehsaan noorani,loy mendonsa,shankar mahadevan and lyrics written by prasoon joshi
Roshani song lyrics from Aarakshan sung by shankar mahadevan music directed by ehsaan noorani,loy mendonsa,shankar mahadevan composed by ehsaan noorani,loy mendonsa,shankar mahadevan and lyrics written by prasoon joshi
Mahalakshmi Iyer, Raman Mahadevan, Tarun Sagar, Gaurav Gupta, and Rehan Khan have sung the song "Mauka". Mahalakshmi Iyer is known for singing songs like Khud Ko Tere, Teri Meri Love Stories, and Charha De Rang.
Says a source, "Deepika sent Prakash Jha a very cute message saying she wanted a love song on a par with Raajneeti's 'More Piya', with a smiley that Prakash just couldn't resist. He tweaked his script and made space for the love song."
Says Deepika, "I was really looking forward to shooting this song and it's come out to be amazing. Prakash ji has a really good sense of music. I remember how 'Mora Piya' was such a rage. I remember messaging him to please give me a good romantic song in the film. It's always on loop on my iPod, wherever I am travelling. And now 'Accha Lagta Hai' which is such a playful and cute romantic song. "