Ten melodious lesser known Bollywood rain songs

I just realized that monsoon is going to be soon over and never had it been so much talked about, wished for and its near absence so much felt than this season , when it has been acknowledged at all quarters that the rains had indeed been scanty this year  .

And so when the rain Gods decided to reward us with a brief spell of heavy rains, I decided to make the most of it – no, I am not speaking of the chai pakodas that invariably goes with the word ‘rains’ but rather songs or rain songs that makes the moment more enriching.

While at it , I observed that whenever we think or speak about songs from Bollywood on rains, we are usually quick to come up with the usual Rimjhim gire sawan, Pyar hua ikraar hua,  Ek ladka bheegi bhaagi si, Tip tip barsa paani to name a recent one and so on. You could compare notes with your friend or colleague or even the playlists floating over the internet and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see how many of them would be common choices. No I am not demeaning them at all. The writing is in the wall for all to see –that those are The ones as far as rain and songs go.

But occasionally familiarity has a price to pay, as in , sometimes we tend to ignore other equally good but lesser known options in the face of popular choices. Of course we are speaking about songs here and not economics but still I stand by my statement that many a times in our quest for popular choices we do tend to overlook other lesser known good numbers.

And hence my aim today is to bring before you a compilation of my ten Lesser known melodious rain numbers from Bollywood- songs that will leave you equally spell bound as those famous other songs generally associated with rains.

Ab ki sawan mein ji dare- Lata Mangeshkar Kishore Kumar- Jaise ko taisa- 1973-Music Director RD Burman

An RD Burman number hardly goes wrong but sometimes as I said good songs go unnoticed if their box office performance isn’t upto the mark. A song from a 1973 movie , picturised  on Jeetendra and Reena Roy, it is a peppy and mischievously sensuous number  , that has all the trappings of the RD magic and will leave you swaying with the beats. For best effects listen to it in your car stereo during a downpour and feel it perk you up instantaneously.

Megha re megha – Pyaasa Sawan- Lata Mangeshkar and Suresh Wadkar- 1981- Music Director – Laxmikant Pyarelal.

In the late sixties upto eighties along with RD Burman, few new music directors began their upwards climb to success, one of whom was the duo Laxmikant Pyarelal. Their brand of music was high on melody and less on gimmicks and experimentations unlike Pancham who was of course in a class of his own. However LP’s brand of melody paid off as the audience lapped them up eagerly but sadly though highly loved by the masses they were often overshadowed by the Maestros of yesteryears as far as mentions were concerned. Megha re megha is a beautiful soothing number sung by Lata Mangeshkar and Suresh Wadkar and gives you a ‘floaty’ feel as if you are the cloud or ‘Megha’ that the actors address to. Just lie back and watch the dark clouds majestically tower over you as the song plays in the background.

Tum jo mil gaye ho – Md Rafi and Lata Mangeshkar- Hanste Zakham 1973

A song lasting for 7.15 whole minutes but which leaves you spellbound for the whole duration by its sheer magic and soulful rendition by Md Rafi and Lata Mangeshkar (in parts) The tempo is perfect for a romantic rain song set in a car – slow and languid , but soulful and passionate as only a Md Rafi can be interrupted with bits of fast in between, finally picking up towards the end. Both the audio and visual effects compliment the song. The thunder claps in the background and the echo like quality of the song, the wipers and the frosted and misty effect of the car windows all add to it to finally create a brilliant composition. Madan Mohan with his brand of magic, this is!

Oh ghata sawari  Lata Mangeshkar Abhinetri 1970 Laxmikant Pyarelal

Another beautiful Laxmikant Pyarelal number sung by Lata Mangeshkar, the song has a fleeting , fancy free feel to it reminding you of a carefree butterfly in a beautiful garden. Hema Malini looks pretty as a picture in the song and is a complete delight as she goes about doing her thing on a rainy day. No wonder it is a lovely song to watch as is also to listen to.

Ooo sajna barkha bahaar aye- Lata Mangeshkar- Parakh – 1960- Music director – Salil Choudhary

I have to confess I know nothing about the movie and the video showed Sadhana as the actress but yes, I have been listening to this song since long back from where I can remember never bothering about what the movie might be , which I admit is not a good thing . I am inspired though and will certainly dig up the archives for the same. Coming back to the song, this Salil Choudhary composition with lyrics by Shailender also has a bangla version which is equally melodious (obviously) with quite interesting varying notes and evokes a kind of nostalgia as you listen to its soft dulcet tune.

Rimjhim ke geet hain sawan – Anjana- Lata Mangeshkar and Md Rafi- 1969- Laxmikant Pyarelal

Unlike your overtly sensuous, certain rain numbers, this number by Md Rafi and Lata Mangeshkar has a subtle yet shimmering sensuousness in it. The passion exists but isn’t unbridled, the emotions are there- expressed but under a veil of shyness, the love is there but so is the tenderness and that is the beauty of the song. Actress Babita looks ravishing in the song and speaking in a reversed manner LP’s composition does full justice to Md Rafi and Lata Mangeshkar’s voices

Bheega bheega mausam Lata Mangeshkar Suraag 1982 Bappi Lahiri

Yes this is a Bappi Lahiri composition which came as a surprise to me. The beautiful lyrics are no surprise as a Kaifi Azmi composition however. The song is not exactly a rain song but rather it alludes to a rainy day or the Monsoon season and has used a few metaphors related to the rains in the lyrics of the song. In spite of not a single ‘droplet of rain ‘ being shot in the song, it does give us the feel of a nostalgic, slightly melancholic rainy day . Do listen to it and go down the memory lane(which I am sure you have many) of those rain filled moments of love that you had spent some time ago in the past.

Jalta hai jia mora bheegi bheegi – Zakhmee-1975- Kishore Kumar and Asha Bhosle – Bappi Lahiri

Bappi Lahiri again with this cutely naughty rain number  which extracts the best from the singers Kishore Kumar and Asha Bhosle. Though the song speaks of the craving of young lovers on a rainy night , the situation depicted however is a hilarious one which has nothing to do with what it seems to be. But why worry about the video when you can just play the song on a rainy night and send the right signals to your companion with just the help of Asha- Kishore- Bappida charm?

Ab ke na sawan barse- Lata Mangeshkar- Kinara -1977- RD Burman.

Kinara was directed by none other than Gulzar and a Gulzar RD Burman combination is guaranteed to give you a high dose of poetry and melody , woven into something poignantly beautiful. Lata ji gives just the right touch to balance it with the right amount of nostalgia and melancholia. I love to sit by a large window, preferably the sill and watch the rain drops play while the song plays in the background.

Barkha rani jara jamke barso Mukesh- Sabak 1973- Music Director – Usha Khanna

Now this is a sweet and a simple song with a rustic appeal that only Mukesh can do justice to. Usha Khanna , the music director has done a delightful job with the right music and accompanying rain effects, but the best part of the song is the lyrics- Barkha Raani zara jamke barso, mera dilbar ja na paye jhoomkar barso (where the singer is pleading the Rains to rain hard so that his beloved who is with him cannot leave him so soon)! What a way to declare one’s love…I mean, how much sweeter can it get!

Now those were my ten lesser known melodious rain songs, but I can never stick to my stipulated ten ever, if you have read my other articles. Just like the Baker’s dozen of thirteen, I hope someday Mani’s ten will equal to eleven as I have to add a bonus number as a kind of final signing off message or call it tribute to my compilation and so does my today’s compilation have a 10+1th song.

Brishti pade tapur tupur is a song that I had grown up with and used to love in my childhood days and relate to. If you listen to the song , then you will understand why a ten year old girl could relate to it. Enjoy Hemlata’s  sweet pristine voice  in this lovely duet which exalts rains as only a child would – enjoying it in its fullest form.

Brishti pade tapur tupur – Paheli -1977- Hemlata and Suresh Wadkar- Music Director –Ravindra Jain

So have fun with this rain playlist and stay tuned for more of the golden era  in our section Bollywood retro revival

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