Dark shades of Punjabi music industry

What can be more fascinating than a glimpse into what goes on behind the scenes in the Punjabi music industry? Invariably reverberating with rocking beats, it has deep fault lines that are exposed every now and then. So, can a series helmed by Rohit Jugraj, director of Punjabi films like ‘Sardarji’, its sequel and ‘Jatt James Bond’, truly offer us an expose? Or deep insight? Well, the series, the first season of which dropped in 2023, may not be an unsettling reflection of its grim side, but has its strengths.

Before we fault the musical series for unspooling like a thriller in its concluding part, we also need to understand that violence has marred Punjab’s irrepressible musical heart time and again. Thus, this one-of-its-kind musical series fictionalises the brutal killing of Amar Singh Chamkila and moves forward from there. It has violence and revenge running as a recurring thread, not too far away from the truth of the musical world where extortion calls are a norm and gun culture not uncommon.

If Season One laid the ground, the questions that kept hanging certainly find answers. Will Kaala (Paramvir Cheema) finally learn who murdered his father Tara (Gippy Grewal) and be able to avenge his death? But, as Kaala discovers who the killer is early on and plots a revenge game, you know it’s only a red herring and fingers will eventually point in another direction. Nevertheless, the writers (Jugraj himself and Fakira) keep the mystery alive in this game of pawns and players. The key player, of course, is Pratap Singh Deol, played by Manoj Pahwa.

Though the series revolves around singer Kaala and the wide-eyed actor Cheema lends him some swag, angst and vulnerability, it’s the powerhouse of talent Pahwa who is truly the star in the acting department. Now bombastic, now emotional, an arrogant boor, a caring father and above all the music magnate who understands music like nobody’s business, it’s a well-written part. And he does full justice to its larger-than-life projection.

His reel son, Mohit Malik as Guru Deol, too, gets a complete arc and puts in a spirited act. Though Suvinder Vicky doesn’t get as complex and layered a part as he is capable of mastering, he delivers, as expected.

If casting is on point, casting director Mukesh Chhabra as Dimpy, too, has a cameo in which he marks his presence in limited time. And it’s heartening to see Navneet Nishan as the no-nonsense manager.

Besotted heroines, be it Lata (Akasa Singh) or female lead Isha Talwar as Jazz, however, fail to evoke any deep emotions, despite tragic overtones.

More than the raw beauty of love, Jugraj gets the yaari-dosti inflections right. Be it friends who stab behind your back or the ones who stick come what may, the bonhomie between Kaala and Jagga (Prince Kanwaljit Singh), for instance, truly rings true. So does the Punjabi diction in this mix of Hindi and Punjabi and the music, which rarely strikes a false note. Composed by a host of musicians, it captures the many shades of Punjab: robust to melancholic.

The climax, too, is laced with sorrow. Cunning twists anyway abound, both in the past where you see Gippy Grewal’s mettle as Tara holding out, and the present where Kaala’s quest for vengeance is the crux.

Though titled ‘Chamak: The Conclusion’, the series does not offer closure in the classic redemption sense, neither to Kaala, nor the audiences. The enemy is still at large and Kaala has solid reasons to find his real bete noire. If we are not reading too much into the title, it’s open-ended enough to roll on to more seasons. For now, the drama has enough intrigue points to hold your interest and attention, apart from some stellar performances and rocking music.

It may not tick all the boxes of immersive engagement, but certainly the watchable meter.

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