`Raanjhanaa` director in search of voice for Sonam

Mumbai: Actress Sonam Kapoor, who plays a 17-year-old in Aanand Rai`s `Raanjhanaa` is trapped in a strange dilemma. Her character can`t get older until a ghost voice is found to sing a song for her.

Rai is looking for a singer, who can express the 17-year-old character`s emotions as she falls in love for the first time. "Aanand has got a beautiful song written by Irshad Kamil about a girl expressing her first love. A.R. Rahman has come up with a flawless melody. Now the hunt is on for a ghost voice for Sonam to express the tremulous exuberance of a girl in love for the first time," said a source. The problem is, the director has put forward an incredibly daunting reference point. "Aanand wants a voice like Lataji (Lata Mangeshkar) in Raj Kapoor sahab`s `Bobby`. In that film, when Lataji sang `Aksar koi ladki iss haal mein`, she sounded like a 16-year girl experiencing the ecstasy of love. "And mind you, Lataji was 40 when she sang for `Bobby`. Aanand wants the same feelings to emerge when Sonam sings of her first love," added the source. Meanwhile, the wait is on. A source from Varanasi says: "The portions where Sonam and Dhanush play 17 are nearing completion. Now the two actors are expected to take a five-year leap to play 23. "But Aanand has put the transition on hold until he finds the voice for 17-year-old Sonam`s love song . Until then she stands frozen in time." Adding to the voice-crisis is the fact that composer Rahman doesn`t really favour the director`s suggestions on the choice of playback singers. But Rai is not too worried. "I am in no hurry. I am shooting here at my own pace. My actors Dhanush and Sonam are with me, and we`re having fun. "The voice that Rahman saheb and I are looking for may take time. That`s okay. We don`t need to rush. There is no one to express what Lata Mangeshkar did in `Bobby`. But I can proudly tell you my song about first love has been as beautifully written and composed as `Mujhe kuch kehna hai` in `Bobby`," he said. IANS