Pareshaan - Ishaqzaade by Shalmali, Amit Trivedi, Kausar Munir

Pareshaan - Ishaqzaade works because it does not try to do too much — it finds one feeling and holds it perfectly. The music, composed by Amit Trivedi, carries the song forward with a confidence that matches the performance.

There are singers who perform songs and singers who live inside them. On Pareshaan - Ishaqzaade, Shalmali, Amit Trivedi, Kausar Munir clearly belongs in the second group. a talented ensemble cast are at the heart of Ishaqzaade, and Pareshaan - Ishaqzaade captures their dynamic at its most compelling.

2012 marked the release of Ishaqzaade, and Pareshaan - Ishaqzaade was the track that ensured the album would be remembered. The emotional register of Pareshaan - Ishaqzaade is wide enough to fit celebration and solitude equally well.

At 4:52, the track does not overstay its welcome — it says what it needs to say and leaves the listener wanting more. It is, simply, one of the better songs to come from Hindi in recent memory — and the numbers agree.