“Only music will stay forever”, says Samir Kochhar’s Chandan Lal Sanyal during one of the most pivotal scenes in Qala’s life that actually made her into what she is in the movie. Something that you will actually pray for when you step out of this film. Not just because of how beautiful it is, but because of the story that this movie conveys and the means it chooses to do it, it will be rather difficult to listen to the music without the facsimile of Qala dangling in front of your eyes. 

To talk about the music of Qala before and after watching the movie is something that has seen far more evolution than humanity has seen itself. From a 1940s reminiscing bunch of melodies, each song turns into a story of its own, full of pain, agony, and subtle hints at how quite literally music stays forever.  

The masterful disguise of music and the reality

The sheer serenity that listening to music holds is that it brings you closer to a place where you speak your heart. It opens the gates to realities, happy or sad. Which is why there is a sense of association when one listens to music. Listening to the merry tunes of ‘Ghodey pe Sawar’ created a picture of a loving squabble between two innocent lovers. Which so hauntingly masks the realities of Qala’s life, full of fights inside and outside of her, which are anything but a doting crossing of swords. 

And such is the case for the renaissance of Sant Kabir and the soothing song ‘Nirbhau Nirvair’. Something that oozes calmness into your ears, but pierces your tender heart with a million little darts. To see a gentle child yearn for her mother’s affection, while it is showered onto a literal nobody, is a punch right into the gut. 

As a result, Qala actually starts picking up the very things that she hates her mother for. Be it sleeping with men from the industry to gain material favours, hunting for glory with such dedication that you lose the sense of morality, and keeping a so-called “legacy” above the very existence of their being. We see Swastika Mukherjee’s character go through a lot, just because she is a woman. But instead of learning from it, and actually doing something about it, she reflects all this trauma on her child.

And that is the only major difference she and Tripti Dimri’s character have. While the mother crumbles down, the daughter actually stands up for herself. She confronts her mother, asks the right questions, and even though she never gets an answer, she learns the valuable lesson of having one’s own voice.

Qala and its melodies speak, silence, and slap you right in the face

Shauq was one song that stayed with me after the first listen to the Qala EP. Maybe it was Swanand Kirkire, Shahid Mallya, and Sireesha Bhagavatula’s mesmerizing voices, or it was Varun Grover’s enticing writing or Amit Trivedi’s true genius. Or maybe it is just the fact that the song speaks to anyone listening to it in the most realistic way possible. A tale of two partners, where one sings words of praise and lays their heart and the other accepts it all with nothing but tenderness. 

However, a mere look at the visuals shatters this mirage into a gazillion little pieces. Shauq talks about breaking down in front of your enamored people, and yet we see Qala’s own mother break her down in one big blow, while never bothering to pick her up again. It renders you speechless, both by the beauty of it and by the pain it carries.

While the other songs beautifully try to hide the realities of Qala, there is one that actually speaks in complete honesty. Which is Phero na Najariiya, a song that is quite literally a cry from the lead character. She is tired of being ignored and punched down for standing up for herself, and hence, begs others to not look away from her. The song’s beautiful vocals are alluring enough to fool the listener, while the words are as real as they come.

Qala will indeed go down as one of the best films of the year, and one major reason for that will be the music. Maybe the movie will foster in our memory for a while and then be kept on the back shelf for the longest time, but as it itself stated, the music will stay forever.

Be sure to check out the enigmatic story of Qala on Netflix.