Ebrahim Nabiyulla by Nasnin N

Ebrahim Nabiyulla works because it does not try to do too much — it finds one feeling and holds it perfectly. Muhamad Mayyanad's arrangement gives the track a layered quality that rewards repeated listening.

The performance by Nasnin N is the centrepiece here — controlled where it needs to be, open where it counts. On screen, a talented ensemble cast bring the emotional world of the song to life in a way that enhances rather than competes with the music.

By the end of 2020, Ebrahim Nabiyulla had moved well beyond its original audience and into everyday playlists. Ebrahim Nabiyulla is the song for the end of a long day when you want music that understands something without being asked to explain it.

The concision of Ebrahim Nabiyulla — just 9:09 — is part of what makes it work. There is nothing here that should not be. It is, simply, one of the better songs to come from Malayalam in recent memory — and the numbers agree.