Renkil Muhabath by Muhammed Afsal A, Muhsin N S

There is an honesty to Renkil Muhabath that separates it from most Malayalam songs released around the same time. Muhammed Afsal A, Muhsin N S, Muzammil Tholicode's arrangement gives the track a layered quality that rewards repeated listening.

Muhammed Afsal A, Muhsin N S's vocal here has a quality that is difficult to describe but impossible to miss — it simply feels true. The chemistry of a talented ensemble cast is embedded in every moment of Renkil Muhabath, making it as much a performance as a song.

2020 marked the release of Renkil Muhabath, and Renkil Muhabath was the track that ensured the album would be remembered. Listeners have described the experience of Renkil Muhabath differently — romantic, melancholic, uplifting — which suggests the song is large enough to hold many truths.

The 4:56 runtime feels perfectly judged — long enough to develop its ideas, short enough to compel a second play. For anyone yet to hear Renkil Muhabath, the experience ahead is a good one. For those returning, it will be as good as they remember.