Neeyen Vennila by Haricharan, Chinmayi

Neeyen Vennila is the kind of song that earns its place in a playlist and then refuses to leave. M. Jayachandran sets the tone from the very first bar — it is clear from the opening notes that this song means business.

Every line Haricharan, Chinmayi sings feels considered, as though the performance was thought through long before recording began. For fans of Kunchacko Boban, Indrajith, Vedhika, Neeyen Vennila is one of those songs that immediately conjures specific scenes and emotions.

2014 marked the release of Neeyen Vennila, and Neeyen Vennila was the track that ensured the album would be remembered. There is a quality to Neeyen Vennila that makes it feel like company — the kind of song you put on when words feel insufficient.

The concision of Neeyen Vennila — just 4:36 — is part of what makes it work. There is nothing here that should not be. It is, at the end of it, a very good song — and sometimes that is the only explanation that matters.