Star Cast: Diljit Dosanjh, Parineeti Chopra

Director: Imtiaz Ali

What’s Good: The storytelling, music and performances

What’s Bad: It is not releasing in theatres

Loo Break: Depends on whenever you pause, but don’t.

Watch or Not?: Yes

Language: Hindi & Punjabi

Available On: Netflix

Runtime: 162 Minutes

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In the 1980s, Amar Singh Chamkila and his wife Amarjot became two of India’s most beloved singers. With each successive album, the duo’s songs with daring lyrics grew increasingly popular. But one fateful day, as they made their way to an Akhada in Mehsampur, Punjab, to perform, the two were shot and killed. We find out about Amar Singh Chamkila, his rise to fame, and the numerous people who wanted to have him killed in the film by Imtiaz Ali.

Amar Singh Chamkila Movie Review: Script Analysis

The opening scene of Imtiaz Ali’s Amar Singh Chamkila is Chamkila and Amarjot getting out of their car to grace the stage for their performance in Mehsampur. However, the duo are shot dead, and we’re not shown the faces of the people who did it. The moment the couple drops dead on the ground, you expect the story to follow a tragic tone. However, Imtiaz surprises you with the Baaja song that talks about how Chamkila was and how his songs were “tharki” (vulgar). Like the energy his music evoked, the entire sequence bursts with colour and life.

The Netflix film is a musical biography at its core, but by showing us the assassination scene first and revealing how several characters or groups had a motive to kill Chamkila, the movie also becomes a murder mystery. Like any whodunnit, we’re shown people from Chamkila’s life who had strong motives to cause him harm. So, while we watch the singer with a compelling voice and his Tumbi win hearts with time, we’re also acquainted with why several people were standing against him.

Still from the trailer

Another intriguing factor that keeps you engrossed in the story completely is Chamkila’s meeting with Amarjot. Anyone who knows about the duo or has read about them is aware of how dynamic performers they were together. So we keep anticipating their meeting, which comes at a crucial point in Chamkila’s professional life. What makes the screenplay gripping is how Imtiaz and his brother and co-writer Sajid Ali reveal shocking things about the singers after certain substantial events. That makes the biopic of this unconventional singer such an entertaining watch.

The second hour of Netflix’s Amar Singh Chamkila movie is truly incredible. It’s perfection in every frame as we witness the visuals, music, threats, and animation in Imtiaz’s movie for the first time. We’re shown the true essence of Punjab, its people who love their music, and how it brings them together. But that’s the thing about art. It can bring people together for leisure, enjoyment, and harmony, as well as for hate. The hatred towards Amar Singh and his wife Amarjot is so strong that you wonder why anyone would see these talented singers as a risk to society. Why is it that whether it’s religious people or elite ones who think they’re better than others, they feel so threatened by groundbreaking and skilled artists and their impeccable art?

Amar Singh Chamkila Movie Review: Star Performance

Diljit Dosanjh has poured his heart and soul into bringing Amar Singh Chamkila on screen for this generation. The singer often expressed his respect and fondness for Chamkila, and his conviction to honour his art is visible in every scene. Parineeti Chopra is spectacular as Amarjot, a woman who speaks a few words but astounds you with her vocal prowess. When they’re on stage together, they take you in such a trance, making you laugh and entertaining you with Chamkila and Amarjot’s songs. The rest of the cast does an incredible job throughout.

Amar Singh Chamkila Movie Review: Direction, Music

Imtiaz Ali is back, and how! It’s a statement we will see many using, but it holds the truth. When it comes to music, Imtiaz has always given us fantastic tracks. So when he decided to offer us a musical biography of one of India’s biggest singers from the 80s, he was aware he had to deliver his best. Imtiaz’s efforts to understand Chamkila and the impact of his songs and stardom in Punjab are visible. He made the same efforts to ensure we understood his vision of who Chamkila was, by remaining true to the late singer’s legacy and genuineness.

Often, you are reminded of Tamasha’s Heer Toh Badi Sad Hai song in many sequences. But everything on the screen looks so full of life that you wish, you were a part of that era to experience everything. What I loved is that instead of taking a melancholic approach, Ali told us Chamkila and Amarjot’s story in the most radiant and audacious ways, just like their songs!

AR Rahman and Imtiaz Ali’s combination only gets better with every movie. The blend of their talented minds and fantastic craft has resulted in one of the best music albums of 2024 so far. My favourites from the movie are, of course, all of Chamkila’s songs being used. But I can’t get enough of Baaja, Vida Karo and Tu Kya Jaane from Rahman’s composition.

Amar Singh Chamkila Movie Review: The Last Word

Overall, Amar Singh Chamkila is one of Imtiaz Ali’s best movies. It helps you understand art and the artist and how it’s the people who have the power to make or break someone. Diljit Dosanjh and Parineeti Chopra treat us with one of their career-best performances. The movie leaves such a wonderful impact on you and leaves you with a lingering question—why do some of the best, innovative and distinctive artists have to pay the price because of society’s hypocrisy?

Four stars!

Amar Singh Chamkila Trailer

Amar Singh Chamkila releases on 12th April, 2024.

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