Ek Dhara Ke Jan Gan - Shortcut Safaari by Sadhana Sargam, Atreyi Bhattacharya, Rohit Sharma

Released as part of Shortcut Safaari, Ek Dhara Ke Jan Gan - Shortcut Safaari announced itself as a standout the moment it reached listeners. The production by Rohit Sharma is understated in the best way — supportive without overshadowing the vocal.

There are singers who perform songs and singers who live inside them. On Ek Dhara Ke Jan Gan - Shortcut Safaari, Sadhana Sargam, Atreyi Bhattacharya, Rohit Sharma clearly belongs in the second group. The connection between Jimmy Sheirgill, Aashi Rawal, Sharvil Patel, Mann Patel, Ugam Khetani, Stuti Dwivedi, Deah Tandon, Hardil Kanabar and this song is part of what makes it resonate beyond the film itself.

2016 marked the release of Shortcut Safaari, and Ek Dhara Ke Jan Gan - Shortcut Safaari was the track that ensured the album would be remembered. It fits the playlist for almost any occasion, which is rare — most songs have a narrow emotional window. This one does not.

In 5:23 minutes, Ek Dhara Ke Jan Gan - Shortcut Safaari builds, opens up, and resolves in a way that feels complete rather than truncated. It is, simply, one of the better songs to come from Hindi in recent memory — and the numbers agree.