Song of Love: Daryaa from Manmarziyaan

The most exciting part about the music in an Anurag Kashyap film is I am eager to watch how he is going to use it in the narrative of the film, how he is going to reflect not merely the situation of the scene but also the personalities of his characters through music. The songs in his films constitute an important part to unfold the narrative, be it in a linear or a non-linear fashion, the aim is not merely to take the story forward, which is often quite a misused phrase to describe the importance of music in an Indian film, but to let the characters get a hold of their actions and perhaps create moments which are driven through the realization of getting more freedom when the camera is rolling. The beautiful and the most striking aspect about the music in an Anurag Kashyap film is how the same song can be used in different situations yet somehow provides similar vibes which the various sets of characters are going through. Daryaa from Manmarziyaan is one such song, which establishes the romantic bond between three people at different stages of their life. Rumi, Vicky, and Robbie, throughout the film, are immersed in a Daryaa (River), and while they are submerged in the mental river of certain emotions which is essentially formed through their quest of finding love, acknowledging their eccentric nature, indecisiveness, manipulative thoughts which are meant to derive a fruitful conclusion of finding someone worth spending life with, and the final point of realizing what their heart desires.

Sung by Ammy Virk and Shahid Mallya, written by Shellee, and composed by Amit Trivedi, Daryaa feels like a perfect song one could imagine if someone tells me that Anurag Kashyap has directed a mainstream Hindi romantic film, because I found a lot is going on throughout the song, and not just on the screen, but also in the lyrics, and how the sound of the song is juxtaposed with the personalities of the characters. The result is the sound that we hear in the form of the song can also be interpreted as feelings of these characters.

The constant theme of duality we see throughout the film is also present in this song, we see the Shah sisters and the twin brothers in Kashmir representing the dual nature of the characters, similarly, there are two singers used in the song, I found this quite smart from the director's point of view since the song could have been sung by one singer, but the additional singer gives it a more authentic touch and makes the song more of a conversation between the internal conflicts felt in love. I believe since the theme of dual nature and internal conflict forms an important part of the film, the people involved might have thought why not use that theme in the music as well to further elevate the core thought of the film. It's not that this dual personality necessarily represents right or wrong, just two different sides of a coin, struggling in their way in an attempt to solve the mystery of love. So, of course, there are going to be two different singers used to depict that internal struggle of love. It is more like a conversation between two people who are discussing the definition of love.

Throughout the film, we hear different versions of Daryaa, either in instrumental, in the background with Shenai or lyrical form, the first time we hear the instrumental version of Daryaa is when Rumi gets upset about Vicky's hesitancy to come to her house with his parents to discuss their marriage plans, what follows is Rumi's everyday routine from opening Bagga and Sons Sports shop to explaining the difference between the similar-sounding names of a badminton racquet and a hockey stick, coping her anger by eating spicy Golgappe. In a way, the instrumental version of the song almost feels like giving a foundation of things to come ahead for these two people, they will realize the fact that there is more to Pyaar than just indulging in Fyaar, as it turns out, Rumi becomes aware of this fact first and tries to sort out this issue with Vicky who is caught off-guard with Rumi's plans for marriage. The instrumental tune which feels like a Rajasthani Folk Tune slowly sets up the relationship dynamic between Rumi and Vicky. The relationship moves from crossing terrace at dawn for the adrenaline-driven make-out sessions into making important decisions about the prospects of life, the instrumental version of Darya acts as a catalyst in this transition period.

The Lyrical version of the song starts when Rumi tells Vicky in front of his family that she has agreed for the marriage proposal from Robbie's family and she doesn't expect Vicky to be present in the town, Vicky's Father is in agreement with Rumi's suggestions, and he too suggests Vicky to drive off to either Shimla or Delhi. The song starts with shots of the preparation usually observed in most of the weddings in a small town, sweets being prepared, a man with clothes iron is seen setting up his place of work, the chaotic atmosphere is captured beautifully by Sylvester Fonseca, the cinematographer of the film. The setting is very ordinary yet the shots make you feel the grandeur of the occasion of marriage in a small town.  

Let me first talk about the sounds used in the song, the song starts with clinching of bells, almost signifying the tragic end to Vicky and Rumi's love saga, as the singers gather momentum, we hear sound erupt with an intense cry, one can feel that this song is Vicky Sandhu's Jordan moment of Tutte Hue Dil Se Hi Sangeet Nikalta hai. The strong base used in the song is reflective of the modern touch to it as if it's composed by a DJ, which Vicky is. The DJ in question is heartbroken and has been told to compose a love song, more preference is being given to the designing of the sound rather than focusing on the lyrics, the sense of urbanization in the sound is totally in sync with Vicky's lifestyle, that aim of being classified under modern and ultra-urbanized is easily visible. The strong base, a slight hint of Indianness is what the song is. If you follow how the song is concluded, you can sense the outburst in Vicky's heart. The song is from Vicky's perspective. One could imagine Vicky being compared to the character of Sameer from Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, both are linked with the connection to music, although the comparison would be unfair to Sameer because although Vicky aims to become a DJ, he doesn't necessarily represent the craft of a musician, his idea of a popular musician is someone who appeals to masses, so one could certainly argue, how relevant Vicky considers music as a part of his life.

In an interview with Rajeev Masand, the music director of the song, Amit Trivedi mentioned that the reference song given to him was Qismat from Amy Virk, and was told to come up with something better, Amy Virk who sang the song appears on a poster with his popular song Qismat on the walls of Vicky's studio, where he mentions that artist such as him require one popular track and bit of luck to rule the pop music industry.

Now, coming to the lyrics of the song, Shellee uses quite conventional lyrics to represent the situation of separation of lovers, but I would like to infer that despite the conventional nature of the lyrics, there is a lot of stuff to be explored through the lyrics, लाख कहा दिल नु पर फेर वि है अड़ेया a line which perfectly sums up the dynamic between Rumi and Vicky, even though both are crazy, madly and passionately in love with each other but when both of them are told to come out of their fantasy scenario, they are just not ready to accept the reality, courtesy of the stubborn nature of their heart. My favorite line from the song is प्यार सवाल क्यों होया जी, के हाल बेहाल क्यों होया जी when the situation between Rumi and Vicky has changed so drastically that now the idea of love that both of them have turned into a question mark, simply because Vicky doesn't feel sure about marrying Rumi suddenly, and from Rumi's perspective that Vicky doesn't want to commit to her that he will marry her, the raw energy that acted as the catalyst between the two people has now transformed into a sense of doubt, a feeling of vagueness about their love. Shellee smartly crafts this line to pose the change in the equation of their relationship, love which is always meant to be the guiding light in life has now itself turned into a dark tunnel. The entire lyrical version of the song is from the perspective of Vicky rethinking about his decision, and how the absence of Rumi from his life will change the person he is. When the song starts comparing the person in question with God with the line तेनु खुदा मनेया ते तेनु रब मनेया, the instant reaction is that these are not the kind of people who will consider each other as an entity of God, they are characters from an Anurag Kashyap film, who are real and understand the Grey shade of life but it took me a while to understand that these lines actually could mean that to remain in high spirits they need each other. By high spirits, I mean a phase where both of them are so separated from the realities of the world.  

The Third-occasion in which the theme of Darya is used in the film is during the pre-interval sequence, where Rumi anxiously waits for Vicky, while Robbie wears his wedding outfit unsure whether Rumi will turn up for the wedding or not whereas Vicky takes a reverse gear yet again on his decision to be with Rumi. This theme I feel belonged to all the three protagonists who have somewhere started to submerged in the River of their tears. The theme also serves as the background for the Amrita Pritam Poem which Rumi recites.

The last time we hear Darya in an unplugged version sung by Deveshi Sehgal is when Rumi and Robbie are separated, and Vicky yet again tries to enter in her life. The song places Rumi in the same situation in which Vicky was placed earlier, but now she is standing in front of Robbie, this fascinating use of the same song in different forms feels that there is always more to lyrics and sounds of songs than what we generally imagine. The sense of doubt earlier felt by Vicky is now in front of Rumi as a question mark to go ahead with Vicky or Robbie because of प्यार सवाल क्यों होया जी के हाल बेहाल क्यों होया जी. Amit Trivedi mentioned that Shellee while writing the song termed it as the anthem of the phuke hue aashiq (burned lovers) which turns out to be true because at the first instance Vicky is that burned lover who cannot see his love going away from him, while in the last instance Rumi is having trouble accepting the fact that Robbie is no longer a part of her life, this never-ending loop of confusion, indecisiveness, rebound feelings associated with the feeling of love is so beautifully represented through many songs of the soundtrack, and Darya is just one such example of it.