Qala (2022) Review!!

Synopsis – Haunted by her past, a talented singer with a rising career copes with the pressure of success, a mother’s disdain and the voices of doubt within her.

My Take – While we have seen various unnerving tales about guilt and jealousy taking place in the showbiz, this latest Netflix release presents a counter-narrative to accounts of women in the early years of the Hindi film industry. A story that allow itself to fully descend into the glorious madness it teases at, something on the lines of director Darren Aronofsky‘s Black Swan (2010).

Structured as a meditative study of the daunting hurdles that stand in the way of a girl who deserves better, the film acts as a worthy follow-up to the writer-director Anvita Dutta‘s debut film, Bulbbul, an impressive yet uneven fairy tale revamp, and marks her second collaboration with upcoming powerhouse actress Triptii Dimri, who together manage to create the magic yet again.

Weaving a compelling tale of patriarchy, toxic relationship, ambition, envy, rampant misogyny, and mental health, the film impressively brings together the beauty and the dark reality of the music world. And powered by director Anvita Dutt‘s screenplay and great cinematography, production design, background score and editing, the film delivers enough to not merely be a surface-level sensory experience.

Yes, given its themes and treatment, it obviously requires an acquired taste. Especially as it broods, contemplates far too much and at times it can be a little too decorated for its own good, however, the sum of all parts are particularly memorable, even if it is telling a familiar story about artistic aspiration becoming a conduit for discovering the fractured, personal self. This is just the perfect sort of film to watch on a quite evening when you’re in the mood for something melancholic, hereby enhancing the experience.

Set in the 1930s, the story follows Qala Manjushree (Triptii Dimri), a successful female playback singer, who finds herself caught in a web of defeats and deceits, part of which are of her own making. Sharing a highly dissolved relationship with her mother, Urmila Manjushree (Swastika Mukherjee), an acclaimed classical singer with a patriarchal mindset, who trained her daughter in the art but is never completely satisfied with the latter’s efforts, skill and talent.

Making matters worse is the arrival of Jagan Batwal (Babil Khan), a local orphan who Urmila discovers at a musical presentation and takes under her wings with big plans sketched out for the young protégée. This development makes Qala her second priority, leaving the fragile girl to feel the danger of being deprived of the role she has always aspired to play as the undisputed bearer of a generations-old musical legacy, slowly pushing her over the edge.

What follows will take you on a roller coaster of emotions and a few lessons too. While director Dutt’s previous film attempted to rewrite a popular fairy tale here she reproduces a portrait of the artist as an incomplete woman. A woman who though she ascends to a certain pedestal in public life, descends to a far darker place on the inside.

Set as a broody slow burn mix of stunning music, magical setups and some truly arresting art direction, the film constantly shifts from the present to the past, a sequestered but testing childhood somewhere in the snowy hills between Solan and Shimla and the dizzy heights of stardom in an industry that though it looks warmer, as director Dutt tries to situate her views in the mind of her female protagonist.

For example, in the present, despite being a top talent in the industry, Qala is unable to find happiness. Whatever successes she finds in her life, one of which is a Golden Vinyl, she is unable to shake off that feeling of inadequacy prompted by her mother’s scorn and refusal to keep in touch.

Even the film’s contemporary themes, including an evocative portrayal of a superstar’s mental health, are as intrinsic a part of its story as its distinctive narrative style, as Qala tries to use her voice to undo the wrong that she suffered and even inflicted on her way to the top. Armed with an awareness that only comes with first-hand experience, she tries to subvert all that she cannot change. She mostly succeeds at it. But that turns out to be her biggest failing.

Here, director Dutt has created an artistic world with mesmerizing cinematography and enchanting art direction where each frame is so ecstatically presented that it is difficult to take your eyes off the screen. Add to that Amit Trivedi’s music is simply mesmerizing and the background score created by Sagar Desai haunting.

Without doubt, the film rides on its impressive performances. Tripti Dimri carries the film with a quiet elegance, bringing every emotion that she goes through alive on the big screen. Her performance is layered and poignant. Her expressive eyes fully convey the depth of her character’s insecurities, desperation, determination and survivor’s guilt. Swastika Mukherjee is eerily unsettling yet arresting presence as Qala’s mother, and does full justice to the condescension that her role requires.

The film marks the debut of late Irrfan Khan’s son Babil Khan. Though the cast is packed with incredibly stellar actors, an earnest Babil manages to hold his own with quiet conviction. In supporting roles, Amit Sial, Samir Kochhar, Girija Oak, Swanand Kirkire, Tasveer Kamil, and Varun Grover efficiently aide. On the whole, ‘Qala’ is a haunting, visually stunning tale backed by great direction, technical finesse and stunning performances.