Songs of Paradise

Biopics are volatile beasts. Too deferential, and they end up mummifying their subjects in sepia-toned sainthood. Too irreverent, and they trivialise a life that originally clawed tooth and nail for attention. Songs of Paradise, Prime Video’s ode to Kashmir’s first female playback singer Raj Begum (fictionalised here as Zeba/Noor Begum), navigates this tightrope with unexpected ease. Let’s dive into Songs of Paradise story and ending, which are both explained here. What starts as the aspiration of a young Kashmiri girl in the 1950s (with the courage to sing when women were instructed to keep silent) in this Danish Renzu movie is, by the end, a generational echo. The flames which engulfed her recordings become the flames that illuminate the way for her granddaughter. The past is not lost as long as someone is still humming its melody.

A musical drama loosely inspired by the life of Padma Shri Raj Begum, Songs of Paradise puts into focus the rich poetic culture of Kashmir that often gets buried under the “Files” of jaundiced perceptions. It is the side of Kashmir that we have hardly seen in Bollywood. Set in a time and space when the idea of a woman singing in public was taboo, it follows the struggle of Zeba Akhtar (Saba Azad/ Soni Razdan), who emerges as the voice of freedom because of her talent and tenacity. With the support of her tailor father (Bashir Lone is outstanding), Zeba stitches her musical dreams under the tutelage of Masterji (Shishir Sharma), who urges her to participate in a singing competition organised by Radio Kashmir. She wins the contest, but the social stigma attached to music forces her to assume a pseudonym, Noor Bano.

Beyond politics and violence, the Kashmir valley has a soul and a voice. ‘Songs of Paradise’, as the title suggests, come wrapped in a melody, nay many melodies — the folk songs that once echoed from its radio station. The film claims to be inspired by the songs of Raj Begum, the first woman to sing on Radio Kashmir. In the film, she becomes Noor Begum, though initially her name in the celluloid adaptation is Zeba Akhtar. The very first scene is dramatic and symbolic. We see Saba Azad as Zeba, singing with gusto, unmindful of the smoke around her. In another time frame, Soni Razdan wakes up frantically and we soon see her preparing for a concert. A young student of music, Rumi (Taaruk Raina), approaches her; he is preparing for his thesis on Kashmir’s music. And thus begins a peep into her journey. Saba and Soni play the younger and older versions of the lead. If this transformation appears smooth, so is the editing by Hemanti Sarkar. There are no jerks. The flashback begins in the Srinagar of 1954. Soni is excellent as always and Saba, who is the niece of the late theatre activist Safdar Hashmi, finally gets the part she deserves. She is diffident and endearing, especially the way she utters “maatlab”.

Songs of Paradise is written and directed by Danish Renzu, stars Saba Azad and Soni Razdan as the leading character of Zeba aka Noor Begum. The film is inspired by the life and the songs of Kashmir’s legendary singer, Raj Begum (1927-2016). The film explores her story with bravery, which she showed at a time when women’s basic rights were limited and opportunities in the arts were scarce. Named as Noor Begum in the film, she is seen being the change she hoped for and paving the way for more freedom and talent for the women of Kashmir. The film begins with Soni Razdan as Noor Begum discussing the rights for her team and artists while renewing her own contract with the station. Strict with her rules and the expectations for her young students, Noor Begum lives up to the name and legacy she created on her own. Meanwhile, a young boy from Mumbai comes to visit her to learn of her story, but, unsure of his intentions, Noor Begum refuses to talk to him.

Inspired by the life of Kashmir’s first female playback singer Raj “Noor” Begum, Songs of Paradise stars Saba Azad as the young protagonist Zeba Akhter in the 1950s, and Soni Razdan as the old legend who narrates her story to a thesis-writing student named (of course) Rumi. We know he’s passionate about music because he strums a guitar absent-mindedly in public. Much of the film is concerned with Zeba’s rise from a modest wedding singer to the voice of Radio Kashmir in a conservative setting where women aren’t allowed to dream beyond marriage and housework. A few good men along the way enable her generational talent: a progressive father (Bashir Lone) who works as a woman’s tailor, a renowned Ustad (Shishir Sharma) who trains her for free, and an artful lyricist and mentor (Zain Khan Durrani, as Azaad) who goes on to marry her. The naysayers are familiar: a regressive mother (Sheeba Chaddha) who sees her daughter as someone’s future property, a community that mocks the parents for allowing the girl to do ‘Western’ things, a radio station director (Armaan Khera) whose cynicism melts away, and a society that’s yet to decode the concept of independence.

Amongst the most rewarding things about Songs of Paradise, which tells the story of Radio Kashmir’s first female singer, Padmashree Raj Begum (‘inspired by’ is the standard caveat) is watching Saba Azad play the lead role, with pleasing strength and vulnerability. The other is the attention paid to the music, which feels authentic. There’s no Bumro-Bumro over-orchestration, the accompanists keeping to what they need to do. Azad’s Noor Begum comes across as a young woman of the 50s, not an actor trying to do period, the costuming and the body-language feeling as if it could well have belonged to that era. The film opens with a young scholar (Tarruk Raina) trying to interview the older version of Noor, played by the wonderful Soni Razdan. Why, she asks. So that her story may be told to a generation which has forgotten her. In her time and in her kind of conservative Muslim family — her father is tailor who stitches women’s garments, and her mother (Sheeba Chadha, excellent as ever) keeps the home fires burning — there was no question of a ‘respectable girl’ not only singing, but making a profession of it, even if one of the most respected teachers (Shishir Sharma) of ‘mausiki’ thinks that she has a voice which the world needs to hear.

Songs of Paradise is a film based on the life and journey of Padma Shri awardee Raj Begum, the first female singer of Radio Kashmir. The story follows Noor Begum (name changed) who defies societal norms to pursue her passion for music. It is a tale of her resilience and the struggles she faced to break free from the shackles of a conservative society to become a celebrated artist. With a solid lineup, but none of the familiar faces deliver any meaningful performances. Soni Razdan’s presence barely captures the aura of a legendary singer. Saba Azad looks mostly confused and struggles to embody the character’s rebellious spirit. Sheeba Chaddha is one of the major disappointments, saddled with a one-dimensional and unsubstantial role.