Indian content has taken a huge leap when it comes to venturing into areas that are scarcely traversed by the mainstream Bollywood. This is especially true after the upsurge of streaming platforms – Netflix’s latest psychological drama Qala is a shining proof of that.
Captained by Anvita Dutt, Qala is a lyrical extravaganza set in 1940s Calcutta (now Kolkata), a city in India. The movie revolves around the life of Qala Manjushree, a gifted vocalist who is trapped in the trauma of her past. The protagonist Qala, essayed by Tripti Dimri is bereft of self-confidence as her mother Urmila had sown the seeds of self-doubt in her right from an early age as she was Urmila’s undesired girl child.
Coloured in an eye-popping palette, Qala highlights a dark reality of life. They say that art imitates life and it is certainly fascinating how Qala (which translates to Art) imitates the most jarring realities of life. One of the songs which garnered widespread popularity, Ghode Pe Sawar, struck an important conversation on consent very aptly in the scene where consent was breached.
The dim-lit rooms reflected the protagonist’s gloomy state of mind. Time and time again, the wide-angle shots of the snow-clad landscape served as a reminder of how abandoned and adrift she felt in life. The hues of crimson red and blazing yellow depicted the madness mingled with the warm embrace of melody. A scenario that served as the visual accompaniment to the song Shauq is the one when the boat was sailing along a pitch-black river while being shrouded in haze – the backdrop is as aesthetically pleasing as the track is acoustically.
Indian movies are notorious for churning songs that run deep into the memory vault—deeper than the film itself. This is true to a point where while the film’s plot itself might not loom large in our memory, its songs continue to live in our heads rent-free. Nonetheless, cutting through the clutter of the mainstream Bollywood movies, Qala meticulously weaves its songs into the story’s unfolding events. Each line of the lyrics will submerge you two feet deeper into the story. With lyrics penned by Amitabh Bhattacharya, Swanand Kirkire, Varun Grover and Kausar Munir and music composed by Amit Trivedi, the tracks in Qala are rich with underlying meanings and also cleverly foretell the forthcoming events.
The film shed light on the controversial subject of casting couch—how artists are promised their big breaks into the industry in exchange for sexual favours— and how the protagonist’s vulnerability led her to succumb to this atrocity. Qala also did not hesitate to deftly make parental trauma the crux of the plot for it drew attention to how parental abuse can wreak havoc on the mental health of an individual. The protagonist’s fame demanded her to be armed to the teeth with grace and poise while the demons of her past compelled her to weep copiously behind the four walls of her chamber. Qala is not your run-of-the-mill film that peddles the typical damsel in distress trope but dares to go further and question the society that is stuck knee-deep in patriarchal ideals.
Tripti Dimri playing the lead Qala did such justice to her role that we felt stifled every time her character was strangled in the confines of her thoughts. Qala, despite being wet behind the ears, paves her way to success and topples everyone who did her wrong, making you root for her as the story grows on you. A noteworthy mention would be Babil Khan’s debut who slips into the skin of Jagan Batwal, another gifted singer who would effortlessly enchant you, defeating every single reason for you to despise him. Babil, son of the late Indian actor Irrfan Khan, not only imitated the character but inhabited it. His debut was enough proof of how he’ll continue his legendary father’s legacy, promising a stunning career trajectory.
The potions that went into the cauldron of making this stunning psychological drama are lyrical grandeur, artistic allure, impeccable acting chops, and an edge-of-the-seat plot that will make you experience every flavour of emotion.Brace yourself as Qala’s tragic climax will not only soar your heart but twinge it. Nonetheless, as they say not every art makes you smile; some make you brood over—and it’s the discomfort you are grateful for. Qala premiered on Netflix on December 1, 2022 and gushing about it today makes me a little late to the party, but oh, what a party!
Written by: Taniya Khan
Edited by: Harsheni Maniarasan