Lokkhi Chhele by Somlata

Not every song from Lokkhi Chhele lingers, but Lokkhi Chhele is the one that stays. The production by Lakkhichhara is understated in the best way — supportive without overshadowing the vocal.

There are singers who perform songs and singers who live inside them. On Lokkhi Chhele, Somlata clearly belongs in the second group. The story told by Ujaan Ganguly, Ritwika Pal, Purab Seal Acharya, Churni Ganguly in Lokkhi Chhele finds its musical expression here — Lokkhi Chhele is where the film's heart beats loudest.

In 2022, Bengali produced many songs, but Lokkhi Chhele was one of the handful that genuinely cut through. Listeners have described the experience of Lokkhi Chhele differently — romantic, melancholic, uplifting — which suggests the song is large enough to hold many truths.

The concision of Lokkhi Chhele — just 3:16 — 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.