Olakudayum Choodi by Afsal Koothuparamba

The Olakudayum Choodi album has several strong tracks, but Olakudayum Choodi is the one most listeners come back to first. Credit goes to for a score that understands exactly what the song needs and nothing more.

The vocal on Olakudayum Choodi is among the better performances Afsal Koothuparamba has committed to record. a talented ensemble cast gave the film its soul, and Olakudayum Choodi is the song that most directly channels that feeling into music.

When it came out in 2020, Olakudayum Choodi felt timely. Years later, it feels timeless. Listeners have described the experience of Olakudayum Choodi differently — romantic, melancholic, uplifting — which suggests the song is large enough to hold many truths.

The 3:30 runtime feels perfectly judged — long enough to develop its ideas, short enough to compel a second play. It is, simply, one of the better songs to come from Malayalam in recent memory — and the numbers agree.