Qala: The dark tale of heartbreaks wins millions of hearts
‘Naam ke aagey pandit lagna chahiye, uske peeche bai nahi,’ (work to achieve a title 'pundit' before your name, not ‘Bai’ at the end) says an over-demanding mother with a perdurable voice and worn eyes, to her daughter, the eponymous protagonist Qala. The girl who wants to be a great singer constantly seeks validation from her mother, ends up with an overwhelming sense of inadequacy.
Directed by Anvita Dutt, Qala (title role played by Tripti Dimri) follows different issues like mental health, noxious patriarchal constructs and toxic upbringing of children leading to further chaos. The movie released on Netflix on 1 December 2022.
A timid girl Qala tries her best to make her mother Manjushree (Swastika Mukherjee) happy, but there is a limit to which hard work can lead up to. Amid this toxic and abusive relationship between the mother and daughter, an orphan and obscure boy Jagan (Babil Khan) appears in the scene whose enigmatic talent draws attention of Manjushree and she takes him under her wings at once.
Qala stands in a maze of anguish, frustration, wrath and sadness wondering what is to become of her now. Manjushree promotes Jagan to who’s who of the film industry to make him a playback singer, the desire Qala nurtured in her heart the entire life.
Overwhelmed with jealousy and sense of negligence Qala poisoned the milk Jagan drank before an event leading him to lose his voice and eventually killing himself. Qala then adopts sly manners, from sexual favour to what not to climb to the top only to become lonelier. It resonates in her voice when she says in a resentful voice, “Ma to abhi bhi nahi hai na?” (Mother isn’t still there for me).
Failing to deal with the fact of stooping low to achieve something, Qala loses her mind and ends her life at the climax of the movie which seemed very predictable yet painful.
The grandeur of the background sets, warm indoor and contrasting snowy opaque outdoors mesmerised the cinephiles. The cast of the movie consists of many finest actors of the industry. Sadly, Tripti Dimri stayed on the same flat-note from start to end. Anyone who watched her in Bulbul, another movie by Anvita Dutt, should admit Tripti Dimri made her niche in the very first movie very comfortably which is missed out in Qala. Amit Trivedi’s songs were icing on the cake besides the painting like cinematography. While Nirbhau Nirvair gives you goosebumps, much-hyped Ghode Pe Sawar will make you hum for next few days.
The plot constantly shifts from past to present from remorse to sufferings, from crime to punishment, from assailant to transforming into victim. But the storyline fails to follow the basic one-at-a-time rule, bringing multiple issues in one story. The writer cum director Anvita Dutt could not bridge between the journey of a female singer in a brutal men’s world and the toxic family environment resulting in mental health issues.
Babil Khan, even if you don’t know who he is yet, will give you sheer shock as you may see the younger Irrfan Khan by his looks. Despite the fact that the debutant had little screen time, his acting and expressions were over the top and left many content and disappointed at the same time as he was expected to have been given longer treatment. His painful eyes and expression charm his way out and created few of the several moments when the viewers couldn’t hold back their tears.
Varun Grover’s cameo appearance as lyricist Majrooh is a surprise for audience. His political leaning in real life, his protest through stand-up comedy helped the audience to relate his character in the movie and its undeniably justified.
Swastika Mukherjee known for her bold characters seemed to be underutilised in the film. Many questions remained unanswered as to what she went through to quit singing or the reason behind her change of personality. Her toxicity towards her daughter made many agonised, but the pain in her eyes or motherly doting nature was quite evident in the character and Swastika portrayed it beautifully.
The director has been successful to make her audience take the same journey as her protagonist. Filled with remorse, Qala hears voice in her head while fearing Jagan to haunt her. The ambiguity and opacity in her head was exquisitely established through snowfalls in a recording-room that deserves applauses.
Despite its predictable climax, the film is worth watching due to its loss, heartbreaks, intricated human emotions, enchanting music, top-notch cast and extraordinary theatrical cinematography.
Qala, as a whole is the black swan dedicated to all those artistic aspirants whose obsession takes them to finally meet with their lonely soul and left forsaken. Anvita Dutt indeed made a familiar simple story into a poetic and magnificent piece of artefact which many are calling a ‘masterpiece’. Let’s agree to disagree!