Willing to Pay $1 to Anyone Who Doesn't Like `Aahista` from Laila Majnu (2018)

I won't say much about Imtiaz Ali's screenwriting. Most of his movies have complex characters that are not easy to understand. But over the years they eventually become cult characters. I am also not sure how great his storytelling is, however, I can say for sure that Imtiaz leaves no stone unturned when it comes to music for his films. Most of the songs are themed around love combined with the essence of Sufism which is a genre that he had mastered. 

From Pritam's Tumse Hi and Aaoge Jab Tum in Jab We Met (2007); to A.R. Rahman's magnum opus Rockstar (2011) with songs like Tum Ho, Phir Se Ud Chala, Aur Ho, and Dichotomy of Fame; to Pritam again in Jab Harry Met Sejal (2017) with Hawayein and Safar - both sung by the great Arijit Singh; to tracks like Agar Tum Saath Ho (2015) - again sung by Arijit Singh. Additionally, I was addicted to Pritam's music in Love Aaj Kal (2020) with tracks like Shayad, Meherma, and Rahogi Meri. Strangely, several of my favorite songs from the Imtiaz Ali movies have been sung by Arijit Singh. Agar Tum Saath Ho, Safar, Hawayein, and Rahogi Meri were my favorites for a really long time. Another common thing among most songs is the fact that they were all written by the great Irshad Kamil.

There was however one album for an Imtiaz Ali film that I missed and now I thoroughly regret it. Thanks to the world of reels on Instagram, I came across the film and the album `Laila Majnu (2018)`. I am not sure how I missed it. Unlike other albums mentioned above, this album is not composed by big production houses. Rather it is composed by Indie local producers - Joi Barua and Niladri Kumar. I know many of you may not have heard of them or the album or even the movie. However, it turned out to be a gem. Out of all the songs, O Meri Laila, Tum, and Aahista are my personal favorites.

You must have heard O Meri Laila. I wanted to bring your attention to the song Aahista, written by Irshad Kamil, composed by Niladri Kumar, and sung by the great Arijit Singh and Jonita Gandhi. It was the first song released on the album. The theme or the situation in the movie is that Qais (aka Majnu) has been so much in love that he has fallen in love with the concept of love. This is the transcendental idea of Sufism. Majnu has fallen in love with the lord. The song is composed in the key of G in Mixolydian mode. Not sure if I mentioned this before, but, Mixolydian is my favorite. It has the right amount of sweetness and bitterness to make my emotions flow like water, exactly conveying the emotions of Qais.

The melody of the song is so unique. Thanks to Imtiaz Ali for giving Maestro Niladri Kumar a chance. It shows the power of what it means to decentralize industries and give a chance to everyone. The melody is not so simple to catch. It took me several loops to fully catch the melody. It took me several days to fully find the chord progression which is in itself very complex. Before materializing into a song, this was a poem written by Irshad Kamil, and what a piece of work it is. Even though I am not in love, I feel the sheer agony of the portrayed characters. Lines such as -

Puche dil toh kahun main kya bhala

Dil sawaalon se hi na de rula

which translated to "What do I convey to my heart? May the heart not make me weep with its questions" and 

Main shaam o seher ab hasta hun

Maine yaad tumhari pehni hai

which translates to "I smile from dusk till dawn, cause I am adorned with your memories". Finally, there is a song that has non-cliched lyrics. Otherwise, songs like Kesariya, Apna Bana Le, and  O Bedaraya are so cliche that they seem to be a consequence of the commercialization of Arijit's voice.

Words will be less to describe how beautiful the voice of both Arijit Singh and Jonita Gandhi is. Arijit's singing is effortless as usual. I wish he performed this song in the live shows as well. Jonita's voice is super soothing. The music video is a scene where Qais slowly transforms himself. It is shot in Kashmir, the heaven on Earth. Anyone who has had a heartbreak can feel the pain of the character.

All in all, the song is super underrated from my POV. I place this song above Tum Ho and Agar Tum Saath Ho (which were the songs I spent several years listening to on loop). I urge you to please give this song a chance and I am 100% sure that you would love it too and listen to it on a loop. Even the entire album with songs like Tum Nazar Mein Raho, O Meri Laila, Sarphiri & Hafiz Hafiz is gold in itself. Laila Majnu (2018) is the best album to come out of Hindi cinema after Rockstar (2011). Why do I say that? How many albums do you know in which all the songs were lyrical genius, carefully crafted & composed, and mingled so well with the film made with a whole heart? Hindi cinema had stopped producing such albums. Most films nowadays only have 3-4 songs with at most two of them being good and a fit for the film.  The rest of the songs suffer from cliched lyrics and rhythm meant to add masala to the start of a trend on social media rather than being fit for the film. The closest to Laila Majnu's level were Ranjhaana (2013) and Ae Dil Hai Mukhkil (2015) but none matched this album. This is what happens when you put an end to nepotism and give a chance to the real hidden gems.

Frankly, I did like the movie. It is so similar to other Imtiaz movies, yet, so different and unique. Of course, it would force you to reconsider what you think love is no matter how much you think you understand it. The movie is less of a love story and more of a deep philosophy. Watch it for the most incredible message that the film tries to convey:

There is absolutely no difference between true love and devotion to the supreme lord. In both states, a person is in the highest state of happiness, is perceived as a lunatic to the world, and is in love with the very idea of love rather than a thing or person.

Only people who have had a heartbreak that has left them tormented can understand this message. The film introduces some new faces. Watch it for Avinash Tiwary! I know neither this album nor this movie is well-known. I think the producers were not even serious about promoting this film. Plus being driven by newcomers in several dimensions, the audience too didn't give this film a chance (including me). That's why fewer people are aware of the fact that such a beautiful film exists. I have mentioned this numerous times - what is considered good and becomes famous - all depends on statistics of thoughts of humans which has a pathological effect of creating propaganda.

I wanted to write about this song before I get over the hangover of it. I eventually will. There were several songs and movies which were my favorite in the past but as my memory faded and I got over the hangover, I began to see them as normal pieces of art. The finest songs tend to result in the longest hangover. This time I had such a long hangover that I was forced to write about it. I think this album will only either have die-hard fans or people who never know it existed.