It is Monsoons The streets look washed. There skies look silver and grey. The trees are swaying. The air smells fresh. There is a cool breeze that refreshes. The world looks great.

The monsoons have always been my favourite season. Traffic jams, water logging not withstanding — the moment i see a rain cloud my heart sings. The smell of fresh earth at this time of the year drives away any irritation at being stuck indoors. I am known to do silly things like walk in the rain to get wet …. it is almost like the rain is renewing me along with renewing the earth.

And of course, there is hot masala chai, pakodas - grandma used to make these great rava pakodas - and hindi film music. There is not much else you need in life :).

My favourite rain songs from Hindi films — in no particular order of preference

Aaj Rapat Jaaye to Hame Na Uthayo - Amitabh Bachchan and Smita Patil sizzle in this rain song from Namak Halal. Making out on a hand cart never seemed more appealing :). Brilliant music by Bappi Lahri and great lyrics by Anjaan.

Barsaat Mein Humse Mile Tum Sajan - A very young Lata Mangeshkar singing for a even younger Nargis. The film is the classic Barsaat. Music by Shankar Jaikishen, lyrics by Shailendra.

Dil Tera Deewana Hai Sanam - Thunder, Lightening and Rain seem to be a good combination for hormones to start acting up. In this song Shammi Kapoor declares undying love for Mala Sinha. The film is Dil Tera Deewana. Music is by Shankar Jaikishen, Lyrics are by Shailendra

Dum Dum Diga Diga - from the movie Chaliya. The director was Manmohan Desai - who gave blockbuster hits like Amar Akbar Anthony, Naseeb, Dharam Veer etal. It was loosely based on Dostovesky’s White Nights but set in the post Partition refugee space. Nutan and Raj Kapoor Star. Rehman has a wonderful cameo as Nutan’s husband. Music is by Kalyanji Anandji, and lyrics by Qamar Jalalabadi.

Ek Ladki Bhigi Bhagi Si - Kishore Kumar and Madhubala and a broken down car. The chemistry between the actors is sweet and playful. An indicator of a much more innocent era. Music by SD Burman, lyrics by Majrooh Sultanpuri.

Ghanana Ghanana Ghir - The fabulously energetic rain song from Lagaan. A.R.Rehman as his best. The song is relief, joy, yearning, all melded together with great melody, rythmn and a folksy quality that translates to the people’s link to rain. Lyrics are by Javed Akhtar

Koi Ladka Hai - from the film Dil to Pagal hai. The song has a great sense of innocence and reflects a great sense of the joy of life that has been rejuvenated by rains. The singers are Lata Mangeshkar and Udit Narayan. Music is by Uttam Singh and lyrics by Anand Bakshi. SRK and Madhuri and a gaggle of kids feature in this feel good song on the rains.

Mujhe Jaan Na Kaho Meri Jaan - a lovely romantic song by Geeta Dutt. Music is by Kanu Roy and Lyrics are by Gulzar. There is something about a rain drenched Mumbai and romance. The film features Sanjeev Kumar and Tanuja and their post marital ups and downs. The film is Anubhav and the director is Basu Bhattacharya who has the recurrent thread of marital discord running through his films.

O Sajna Barkha Bahar Aayi - Lata Mangeshkar at her sweetest best for this song from the Bimal Roy film Parakh. Music by Salil Choudhary.

Rhim Jhim Gire Sawan - there are two variations of this song, one by Lata Mangeshkar - featured on Amitabh Bachchan - who looked so yummy in this song - & Moushmi Chaterjee and Mumbai in the rains. and the other by Kishore Kumar. The film is Manzil, the music is by R.D.Burman, and lyrics by Yogesh ( not Majrooh Sultanpuri as posted earlier. Thankyou Vinay)

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The Kishore Kumar variant.
and the Lata Mangeshkar variant

Zindagi Bhar Nahi Bhooli woh Barsaat ki Raat - Bharat Bhushan serenading a woman he met in the rain. And, a very wet Madhubala is the object of his music. The music is by Roshan Sahaab, and lyrics by Sahir Ludhianvi. The movie is Barsaat ki Raat.

Tags: A.R.Rehman, Aaj Rapat Jaaye, Amitabh Bachchan, Bappi Lahri, Barsaat ki Raat, Bimal Roy, Chaliya, Hindi Film Music, Hindi Films, Javed Akhtar, Kalyanji Anandji, Kishore Kumar, Lagaan, Lata Mangeshkar, Majrooh Sultanpuri, Manzil, Moushmi Chaterjee, Nutan, Parakh, Qamar Jalalabadi, R.D.Burman, Raj Kapoor, Rehman, Roshan, Smita Patil, Sujata