Maula - Wazir by Javed Ali

Maula - Wazir arrived from the Wazir album and quickly became one of the most replayed tracks of 2016. Shantanu Moitra's arrangement gives the track a layered quality that rewards repeated listening.

There are singers who perform songs and singers who live inside them. On Maula - Wazir, Javed Ali clearly belongs in the second group. Featuring Amitabh Bachchan, Farhan Akhtar, Aditi Rao Hydari, Neil Nitin Mukesh, Manav Kaul, John Abraham, the song carries the weight of the film's emotional arc and delivers it with conviction.

The song dates from 2016, but nothing about it sounds dated — the emotions it captures are not tied to a moment. There is no right time to listen to Maula - Wazir. There is only the moment you press play and realise it was the right choice.

The 6:42 runtime feels perfectly judged — long enough to develop its ideas, short enough to compel a second play. Maula - Wazir has earned its place in the catalogue of Hindi music that genuinely matters. The listeners who found it early already knew.