Bollywood Songs that Make Me Happy! (or Bollywood Reviews 2...sort of!)

Okay, so here's the deal.  I procrastinated a long time on my second Bollywood Reviews post.  (Duh!)  And unfortunately, I haven't had Netflix, my major source for watching Bollywood movies, for about 6 months now.  I went back to work on my second Bollywood Reviews post and realized that it had just been too long for me to remember everything about the movies.  I didn't feel right reviewing them when it had been that long since I'd seen them.

I didn't want to leave everyone hanging, though.  So instead, I came up with an alternative:  the post you're reading now.

One of the things I love about the Bollywood films I've seen is the music.  While there are some songs that are too sensual for my taste and my conscience, there are a lot of really fun songs out there, too.  I've decided to share some of my favorites with you in this post.  Some are songs I enjoy because of the acting that takes place during the song.  Some are songs that have really fun choreography (which makes me wish I was way more coordinated!).  Others have beautiful melodies or chordal progressions.  And some just flat out make me smile! :)

You'll most likely notice that these songs feature many of the same actors.  That's partially because I tend to find the actors I like and try out their other films.  It's also because there are a lot of movies done by the same Bollywood actors in the same genre (romance, action, etc), so it's easy to find films starring the same people.  [I'd also like to take a moment to apologize to my aunt that there are no Hrithik songs featured in this post.  I know, I know, how dare I do a Bollywood Songs post without "Beautiful Man"...but hey, I've got some fun Shahid songs at least!  Sorry Mimi, you'll have to go back to my original Bollywood Reviews post and watch "Bole Chudiyan" again.] ;)

Another quick note:  I tried to find as many of these with English subtitles as I could, but for some of the songs it just wasn't possible.  So for those songs without subtitles, I'll try to give you a brief idea of what they're saying.

Oops...and one more thing:  some of these songs feature bare midriffs, and Bollywood dances involve a lot of hip action.  Just wanted to issue a warning for those of you who are offended by that.

So, without further ado, here are some of my favorite Bollywood songs for your viewing enjoyment, in no particular order:


"Aaya Re" from Chup Chup Ke:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3ECsSN3pHU
This film stars Shahid Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor.  While I didn't care for the film on the whole (it was a bit too over-the-top on the humor for me...plus I have a hard time enjoying films where the main character lies throughout the entire thing, even if they come clean in the end), I really love this song.  I think it does a great job of capturing the sweetness and innocence of young love.  An interesting bit of trivia, here:  this is one of the common fantasy sequence songs often found in Bollywood films, and incidentally the only song in which Kareena "sings" (although her voice is provided by a playback singer).  In the rest of the movie, she is mute.  Oh, and the guy at the end of the song is her brother, not a love interest.  I can't remember why he looks so upset...it's been a while since I watched it!

Sorry, this is one of the ones without subtitles.  Basically, he's saying:  "Fallen, fallen, my heart has fallen for you"...and a bunch of other sweet stuff. :)

P.S.  Use caution if you do a YouTube search for "Chup Chup Ke".  Apparently there was another movie with this title that was a lot more sensual.


"Balle Balle" from Bride and Prejudice:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PoLtHqS_LhA
This movie starred Aishwarya Rai (I still haven't figured out how to pronounce her first name!) and Martin Henderson in the title roles.  Also featured in this video are Naveen Andrews, Namrata Shirodkar, and Indira Varma.  I don't know if this film would be considered strictly Bollywood, since it was made in Hollywood, but it definitely has the feel of a Bollywood film (it was made by the same people who did "Bend it Like Beckham", which I never saw).   It's been a while since I've seen this one...I know there was some innuendo and at least one very sensual song.  As a Jane Austen fan, though, I really enjoyed seeing a Bollywood take on Pride and Prejudice.  The differences in culture worked really well for the well-known story line.

In this song, Balraj (Mr. Bingley...the guy wearing black), William Darcy (Mr. Darcy), and Balraj's sister Kiran (Miss Bingley) are at a wedding in India.  This is the moment when Balraj and Jaya (Jane...on the balcony in the pink) see each other for the first time.  And Lalita (Lizzy) is the one in orange and pink.

Unfortunately, I had to change the link, so this one doesn't have quite all of the song.  I've included another link that has the whole song but much lower picture quality:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BnZRN1XBvDY


"Saj Dhaj Ke" from Mausam:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C87WJjQKLNI
Another Shahid movie! :D  I must admit, while I really enjoy Shahrukh's work, Shahid is quickly becoming my next favorite.  This guy can dance!  His leading lady this time around is Sonam Kapoor.

I can't really say much about this movie, because even though I watched it, I wasn't able to watch it with subtitles...so I had no clue what they were saying!  I will say that there were some really fun moments, but the climactic scene at the end was a little too hard to believe, in my opinion.

Once again, this one doesn't have subtitles.  I found the translation online, and it sounds like Shahid's character and his friends are basically teasing the groom (the guy in the tux) for wanting to be all fancy and "English" instead of sticking to his roots.  I really love Shahid's acting in this song. :)


"Nagada Nagada" from Jab We Met:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4lNAOlvnWk
Shahid and Kareena again.  This movie was had some really fun parts, but also had some swearing and innuendo that I did not appreciate.  Oh, and the song during the end credits was really sensual.

Anyway, this is my favorite song from this movie.  Aditya (Shahid's character) has been asked to sing on the spot for the whole crowd by mischievous Geet (Kareena's character).  I chose the clip I did because it was better quality, but for those of you who want to know what he's saying, you can see a lower quality clip with English subtitles here:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wkq0eh-n08c

By the way, I dare you to watch this song without having the urge to move your shoulders. ;)


"Kuch Kuch Hota Hai" from Kuch Kuch Hota Hai:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3RlOzVeruE
Kuch Kuch Hota Hai stars Shahrukh Khan, Kajol, and Rani Mukerji.  This is apparently a really well-known song, and the movie was a big hit too.  While I really enjoyed some parts of this movie and the idea of the story line, it was another one that had more swearing and innuendo than I was comfortable with.  It had some great moments, and this song is one of them.  It's just fun and lighthearted and catchy (warning, you may have it stuck in your head after watching it!).  ;)

UPDATE:  Sorry guys...this link doesn't work and I can't find another version.  For some reason, this particular song isn't available in the US.  If you ever get a chance to hear it, though, it's really fun. :}



"Aisa Des Hai Mera" from Veer-Zaara (you knew I'd get a Veer-Zaara song in here somewhere!):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3e8x4NY6Hw
This one is still my all-time favorite Bollywood movie, and probably will be forever. :D  Shahrukh Khan and Preity Zinta play the main characters.

This song takes place early in the film, and is basically Veer (Shahrukh) introducing his country to Zaara (Preity), who is from Pakistan.

Whenever I watch this, I want to go to India! :)


"Ajab Si" from Om Shanti Om:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MfGzxmLn400
This is another Shahrukh one (What can I say?  He's my favorite!).  Deepika Padukone plays the lovely Bollywood actress Shantipriya, as well as a modern character, Sandy.  I've already explained this movie in detail in my first Bollywood Reviews post, so I won't say more here.

This song happens towards the beginning of the movie (in the 70s sequence...which you could probably tell from the clothing!), when Om gets to see Shantipriya on the red carpet.

I love the beautiful melody and lyrics of this song. :)


"Haule Haule" from Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RwZQoqZfihU
This is one of my husband's favorite Bollywood films (and coincidentally, another film I reviewed in my first review post).  Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi stars Shahrukh and Anushka Sharma in her film debut.

I love how cute Suri (Shahrukh) is in this song (cute as in "Aww...", not "Wow!").  He's supposed to be kind of nerdy in this movie, by the way.  He wants nothing more than to win the love of his beautiful young wife.

I also like this song because it's the one Bollywood dance uncomplicated enough for me.  I can actually do this one without looking like a complete moron. ;)

Oh, and there is some very super mild sensuality in one short part of this song.  I'm probably being overly cautious, but I want to play it safe. :)


Okay, these next two are also in my first Bollywood Reviews post, but I had to include them anyway! ;)

"Hamari Shaadi Mein" from Vivah:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRJiJUwelRA
I love how fun and lighthearted this song is. :)  As I explained in the earlier post, the basic idea of this song is:  "My wedding is coming up and I'm super excited." ;)  Oh, and Shahid's character Prem is so excited that he keeps thinking he sees his fiance on the plane when she's not really there.


"Yeh Ladka Hai Allah" from Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2kGpQ8_qAg
(I recently had to replace this link.  The video quality is beautiful, but there are no English subtitles...only Greek. :}  For a lower quality version with English subtitles, click HERE.)

Even though this one uses Allah's name in a way that I wouldn't want to use my God's name (for more on that, you can read my first review post, which I'm not going to link again, since I already linked it twice!!), I really love Shahrukh and Kajol's acting in this one.  They're so cute together. :)

This song always makes me want to dance...as long as no one's watching!  These dance steps are a little more complicated than "Haule Haule". ;)


And in closing, here's a great fan-made video I found set to "Anything You Can Do" from Annie Get Your Gun. The song recording is from the cast starring Bernadette Peters.  The video features Shahrukh Khan and Kajol Devgan, 2 of my favorite Bollywood actors, in clips from several of the films they've starred in together.   I think this YouTuber did a fantastic job...they even had Shahrukh and Kajol acting during the silences of the songs! I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SbGvm73XRlI


Well, that's it!  I hope it wasn't too annoying having to click all of the links. :}  Which songs were your favorites?