2009 wasnt a very great year for Hindi Cinema as it had very few hits and even fewer good films. But the redeeming factor is that the year gave us some awesome songs. It is tough to pick 10 out of all those songs. But I’m trying. And as I have mentioned earlier, this is a mix of the most popular songs and my favourites. Some songs might not be there in the list, but I hope y’all will understand the limitations when the number is just 10. So here is the list of the top 10 Hindi songs of the year 2009.

10. Tera Hone Laga Hoon – Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani

Music – Pritam
Lyrics – Ashish Pandit
Singers – Atif Aslam, Alisha Chinoi
Picturised on – Ranbir Kapoor, Katrina Kaif

This breezy romantic track featuring Atif Aslam and Alisha Chinoi was an instant superhit. And with the wonderfully charming on-screen chemistry of the lead pair Ranbir and Katrina, this song became a chartbuster. The album composed by Pritam was full of superhit tracks including the wonderful Tu Jaane Na (and an even better unplugged version of that song). But it is this song which became the face for the movie. But sadly, the song is very short in length when it comes in the movie. But for the few minutes that it comes, it sweeps you away with its charm.

9. Aaj Dil Gustakh Hai – Blue

Music – AR Rahman
Lyrics – Mayur Puri
Singers – Sukhwinder Singh, Shreya Ghoshal
Picturised on – Lara Dutta, Sanjay Dutt

This song was the best part of this forgettable multi-crore misadventure. It had top-line stars and technicians and music by AR Rahman. Yet it became a huge flop thanks to its extremely stupid screenplay. Rahman tried a completely different style in this one surprising many of his fans, who even complained that the album didnt sound like a Rahman album at many places. But this track can only be done by Rahman and nobody else. It has Shreya Ghoshal reinventing herself along with Sukhwinder Singh who gives a powerful backup. Together, they render this amazing Rahman composition almost impeccably. The video had Lara Dutta looking super hot and swimming around in the Bahamas looking her best ever. But Sanjay Dutt looked jaded and totally out of place in such a song with Lara. But for Lara Dutta’ smashing looks, Rahman’s composition and Shreya Ghoshal, this song deserves a place in this list.

8. Aal Izz Well – 3 Idiots

Music – Shantanu Moitra
Lyrics – Swanand Kirkire
Singers – Sonu Nigam, Swanand Kirkire, Shaan
Picturised On – Aamir Khan, R Madhavan, Sharman Joshi

This song is slowly turning into an anthem of sorts. The movie is not yet released, but is being awaited with bated breath by the entire country. This song and the catchphrase ‘Aal Izz Well‘ clicked with the audience right from the time the first look of the film was launched. The 30 and 40 plus actors dancing around as college kids does not look out of place at all because they have played it out convincingly. The promos are creating waves through television channels and Aamir has been aggressively promoting the movie as the phrase ‘Aal Izz Well‘. This song may not reach the heights achieved by ‘Paathshaala‘ from Rang De Basanti, but can still find a place in the same league. It is interesting to note that these 3 actors were part of Rang De Basanti as well. Rajkumar Hirani’s feel-good picturisation would add more value to the song.

7. You May Be – Aladin

Music – Vishal/Shekhar
Lyrics – Vishal Dadlani
Singers – Vishal Dadlani, Shekhar Ravijani
Picturised On – Amitabh Bachchan, Ritiesh Deshmukh, Jacqueline Feranandez

This song is indeed the love ballad of the year. Simple and wonderfully romantic lines are written by seamlessly blending Hindi and English by Vishal who is also the singer and composer of the song (along with Shekhar). This soft rock number had Amitabh Bachchan singing the song and Riteish lip-syncing it to his lady love Jacqueline from under a balcony a la Romeo and Juliet. Even though the movie flopped, the song was a huge hit and is one of my personal favourites this year. It will take a long time for this song to be deleted from my playlist. Vishal and Shekhar deliver yet another wonderful song, this time for their buddy, director Sujoy Ghosh.

6. Chor Bazari – Love Aaj Kal

Music – Pritam
Lyrics – Irshad Kamil
Singer – Neeraj Shridhar, Sunidhi Chauhan
Picturised On – Saif Ali Khan, Deepika Padukone

Now, this one was a totally refreshing track with an even more wonderful picturization. This song was one of the high-points of the lovely film. Imtiaz Ali shot Saif and Deepika having their share of fun and romance in and around Delhi. Both the video and the song were completely refreshing. Neeraj Shridhar has given a really different feel to the song very unlike his usual singing style. And Sunidhi’s versatility does not need any explanation. The hit team of Pritam and Irshad Kamil repeated their magic once again through this song. Everything about this song was so great and the song still keeps playing on television repeatedly. Another one of my personal favourites this year which made romance look like lots of fun as well.

5. Emotional Attyachaar (Brass Band and Rock Versions) – Dev.D

Music – Amit Trivedi
Lyrics – Amitabh Bhattacharya
Singer – Rangila, Rasila, Bonny Chakravarthy
Picturised On – Rangila, Rasila, Abhay Deol and Mahie Gill

The phrase ‘Emotional Attyachaar‘ has become iconic, thanks to Anurag Kashyap who suggested that he needs a song with that phrase in his take on Devdas, called Dev.D. The song became a rage all over India and is still a hot track on all TV and radio channels and even on mobile phones. The video had two bandmasters dressed up like Elvis Presley and delivering the most insanely written lyrics in the recent times. The song also featured Abhay Deol fully sloshed and crashing into Mahie Gill’s wedding. The rock version by Bengali singer Bonny Chakravarthy is so awesome and is much better than the other version. But it was the Brass Band version which was promoted which resulted in that song becoming more popular. But the fans of the movie would love the rock version of the song and its spectacular visuals more than anything else on any given day. Full marks to Anurag Kashyap, Amit Trivedi and Amitabh Bhattacharya. All the other 16 tracks of the movie are equally deserving to be in this list, as they are all as awesome as this one. But because of the limitation in the number, I am going with this one as the representation of the whole cult music album that is Dev. D.

4. Dhan Te Nan (Kaminey)

Music – Vishal Bhardwaj
Lyrics – Gulzar
Singers – Sukhwinder Singh, Vishal Dadlani
Picturised On – Shahid Kapur, Chandan Roy

Thif fong if fo awefome!!! Who could probably think that the most common tune used in our films for ages could turn into the signature tune of a nationwide sensational track. Every film has had the ‘Dhan Te Nan‘ music at some point or the other. In fact it is so common that we use it during our normal conversations itself. Vishal picked up that music and made it into a completely rocking number with Gulzar Saab at his imaginative best. Sukhwinder and Vishal’s power-packed voices made the impact stronger. The video of the song was not choreographed at all, and the artistes performed spontaneously doing their own things for each shot. And as Vishal wanted, the result was spectacular. Again a huge hit with mobile phones, the signature tune of this song could easily be the most popular ringtone of the year. Deadly track. And the best part is that no one can really believe that this song was actually written by Gulzar Saab.

3. Masakalli – Delhi 6

Music – AR Rahman
Lyrics – Prasoon Joshi
Singer – Mohit Chauhan
Picturised On – Abhishek Bachchan, Sonam Kapoor and almost the entire cast of Delhi 6.

How can this list be complete without an AR Rahman song vying for the top honours? If you’d ask me, I would place at least 5 songs from this album by Rahman in this list. But since I cant do that, I’m going with the most popular number from the album. The entire album had Rahman at his best with fabulous tracks like Delhi 6, Dil Gira Dafatan, Genda Phool, the haunting Rehna Tu and the supremely spiritual Arziyan (which is my favourite among the songs of the film, and perhaps my personal favourite song of the year). Masakalli had phenomenal success and multilplied the expectations of the film manifold when it started coming out as promos. But the film didnt live up to those expectations. But the song and its wonderfully edited video, which featured snippets of the activities of the character Bittu played by Sonam Kapoor, along with the other characters of the film. The dove Masakalli whom the song is about, is the soul of the song. The shots where Sonam dances with the dove on top of her head were really wonderful. The track Genda Phool, which had folk music interspersed with some crazy and groovy beats, was equally popular. Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra stuck to his policy of no lip-syncs songs in this movie also, with the exception of Genda Phool, which was shot as a folk song sung by the characters. AR Rahman would most probably be walking away with all the awards this year also as usual for this complete album.

2. Yeh Dooriyan – Love Aaj Kal

Music – Pritam
Lyrics – Irshad Kamil
Singer – Mohit Chauhan
Picturised On – Saif Ali Khan, Deepika Padukone, Giselli Monteiro

This song is the soul of the movie Love Aaj Kal. The movie talks about distances, which is exactly what this song is about. It comes right at the beginning of the movie and the video completely confuses you showing shots from various scenes of the movie placed together. Only when you watch it again, you will appreciate the beauty of that video. Wonderfully edited, the video sets the mood for the entire film which has 2 love stories from different time periods running parallel to each other. The soothing melancholic composition by Pritam has soulful lines by Irshad Kamil and is delivered with perfection by Mohit Chauhan. 2 of the top songs in this list are sung by him, so it is quite sure that he is certainly the flavour of the season. It is really hard for me to rate something above Rahman, but this song had that effect on me, and I was forced to place it above Delhi 6. (Though it comes only after Arziyan in my personal favourites this year). I’m listening to this song as I am writing this and I cant stop listening to it now.

1. Iktara – Wake Up S!d

Music – Amit Trivedi
Lyrics – Javed Akhtar, Amitabh Bhattacharya
Singers – Kavita Seth, Amitabh Bhattacharya, Tochi Taina
Picturised On – Konkona Sen Sharma, Ranbir Kapoor

Ladies and gentlemen, presenting to you, the song of the year – Iktara. This mind-blowingly wonderful composition by Amit Trivedi had a beautiful place in the narrative of the great movie Wake Up Sid. The entire album was composed by Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy except for this track. And this Amit Trivedi track turned out to be the best in the movie, and also perhaps the best this year. Amit Trivedi announced his arrival with a bang through Dev D in January and then gave us this beautiful song by September. Kavitha Seth’s rustic vocals coupled with Konkona’s sensitive performance gave a superb result. And each time Amitabh Bhattacharya goes ‘Goonja sa hai koi iktara‘, one cannot help but smile. The song also has a soulful male version delivered in Punjabi towards the climax of the film. That version was not present in the audio album, but gave a fantastic high to those scenes in the movie where it came. Another interesting fact is that the top 3 songs of this year have not been lip-synced. All these songs were basically interactions between the lead actors/characters, which is a great sign. Amit Trivedi has managed to displace Rahman from the No 1 position this year for the first time in several years, in spite of Rahman giving one of his best albums through Delhi 6. Iktara certainly deserves to be the song of the year in all respects.

There were several other great/popular tracks this year – Shukran Allah (Kurbaan), Dont Say Alvida (Main Aurr Mrs Khanna), Manko Ati Bhavey & Khwab Jo (London Dreams), Hai Junoon (New York), Soniyo (Raaz – The Mystery Continues), Tum Mile & Dil Ibaadat (Tum Mile), Jaanemann & Mann Ka Radio (Radio), Kya Karoon & Wake Up Sid (Wake Up Sid), Love Me Love Me & Jalwa (Wanted), Mudi Mudi Ittefaq Se & Paa Theme (Paa), Tu Jaane Na & Main Tera Dhadkan Teri (Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani), Raat Ke Dhai Baje (Kaminey), Chiggy Wiggy, Fiqrana (Blue), Tennu Le (Jai Veeru), Zoobi Doobi & Give Me Some Sunshine (3 Idiots), and many many more.

My personal favourites other than the songs mentioned in the list would be – the entire album of Gulaal and Dev D, Sapnon Se Bhare Naina, Yeh Zindagi Bhi and Baawre (Luck By Chance), the entire album of Delhi 6 – Arziyan being the best, Kaminey, Fatak and Pehli Baar Mohabbat (Kaminey), Give Me Some Sunshine & Behti Hawa Sa Tha Woh (3 Idiots) and the signature music of Paa, which is better than all the other songs of the year put together for me. (Unfortunately, it plays out in between a not so great song in the album).

As we are nearing the end of the year, I have prepared a list of the top 10 songs released in Malayalam this year (so far). And since the forthcoming movies do not promise great musical scores, I think this list would hold good for the entire year. This year was comparatively a better one, musically, as several songs became superhits and took us back to the golden days of good Malayalam music. So here are the top 10 songs of the year 2009 in Malayalam.

10. Chaanthu Thottille (Banaras)
Music – M Jayachandran
Lyrics – Gireesh Puttenchery
Singer – Shreya Ghoshal
Picturised on – Kavya Madhavan, Vineeth
This one became an instant hit with both youth and elders alike. Multiple National Award winner Shreya Ghoshal was roped in from the north to deliver this folk number composed by M Jayachandran. She surprised everyone with her impeccable pronunciation of the language. A good picturisation at a great location like Banaras with great dancers like Vineeth and Kavya Madhavan also added to the appeal.

9. Poomukhavathilkkal (Ivar Vivahitharaayaal)
Music – MG Radhakrishnan, Recreated by M Jayachandran
Lyrics – S Ramesan Nair
Singer – Vijay Yesudas
Picturised on – Jayasurya, Navya Nair
This was a unique song in quite a few aspects. A superhit song of yesteryears was recreated for a completely different situation in a different film. And the son of the original singer, sang the new version of the song. Vijay Yesudas rendered his father’s evergreen melody almost perfectly and gave it a whole new feel. The song about a perfect wife was enacted by Navya Nair in Jayasurya’s dream in the movie.

8. Kunnathe Konnaykkum Ponmothiram (Keralavarma Pazhassiraja)
Music – Ilaiyaraaja
Lyrics – ONV Kurup
Singer – KS Chitra
Picturised on – Kaniha, Mammootty
This song is sure to win some awards for best female playback singer next year. Ilaiyaraaja gives us a gem of a song in Chitra’s mesmerizing voice. ONV’s great lyrics and the royal picturisation add more value to the song. The movie is still running successfully and this song is repeatedly played on TV and radio these days. I would be surprised if Chitra doesnt get any award for this one.

7. Annarakkanna Vaa (Bhramaram)
Music – Mohan Sithara
Lyrics – Anil Panachooran
Singers – Mohanlal, Vijay Yesudas
Picturised on – Mohanlal, Niveditha, Suresh Menon, Muralikrishnan, Lakshmi Gopalaswami
Now this has got to be the children’s favourite. Children all over Kerala were singing this song which can also serve the purpose of being a nursery rhyme. Mohan Sithara takes us on a nostalgic trip with his wonderful tune. Mohanlal sings the song with the required rawness and Vijay Yesudas joins in later to support him. The song had a major role to play in the movie’s narrative as well. Anil Panachooran’s lyrics are also effective.

6. Aazhi Thira Thannil Veenalum (Bhagyadevatha)
Music – Ilaiyaraaja
Lyrics – Gireesh Puttenchery
Singer – Karthik
Picturised on – Jayaram, Kaniha
Ilaiyaraaja never fails to deliver. This song which has Karthik on vocals becomes an instant favourite on the first hearing itself. A rhythmic folk tune rendered in the wonderful voice of Karthik, this song was a huge hit during the run of the movie in April-May. The typical light-hearted Sathyan Anthikkad picturisation also helped a lot in the song becoming a hit.

5. Alliyambal Kadavil (Loudspeaker)
Music – Job Master, Recreated by Bijibal
Lyrics – P Bhaskaran
Singer – Vijay Yesudas
Picturised on – Mammootty, Sasikumar
This has to be the best among the various reworked/recreated old songs in Malayalam. Vijay sings his legendary father’s evergreen song yet again. This song and its video is sure to make anyone feel really good. Mammootty and Sasikumar revisit their past in the video of the song which is nostalgic as well as fresh. Bijibal has kept the orchestration simple and beautiful and that is what works most for this new version of the song.

4. Picha Vecha Naal Muthalkku Nee (Puthiya Mukham)
Music – Deepak Dev
Lyrics – Kaithapram Damodaran Namboothiri
Singer – Shankar Mahadevan
Picturised on – Prithviraj, Meera Nandan
This song became a rage and was there everywhere. Shankar Mahadevan’s powerful vocals were used in a completely different way in this song. Deepak Dev made a fabulous comeback through this album which had lyrics by Kaithapram. The slo-mo picturisation of the ‘agrahaaram’ featuring Prithviraj and Meera Nandan also clicked well with the audience. The song is still a favourite of TV and radio channels.

3. Aadiyushassandhya Poothathivide (Keralavarma Pazhassiraja)
Music – Ilaiyaraaja
Lyrics – ONV Kurup
Singers – KJ Yesudas, MG Sreekumar, Krishnanunni, Chorus
Picturised on – Mammootty, Sarathkumar, Manoj K Jayan, Padmapriya, Kaniha and others
ONV’s inspiring lyrics in this song captures the soul of the movie Pazhassiraja. Ilaiyaraaja came up with a fantastic tune (even though he said that he could’ve come up with better tunes). And when it is KJ Yesudas who is singing, we have nothing else to do, but to remain in awe. MG Sreekumar, another prolific singer joins him in this awe-inspiring song which shows Pazhassi and his army preparing for their battle against the British.

2. Swapnangal Kannezhuthiya Malsyakanyake (Bhagyadevatha)
Music – Ilaiyaraaja
Lyrics – Gireesh Puttenchery
Singers – KS Chitra, Rahul Nambiar
Picturised on – Jayaram, Kaniha
Another Ilaiyaraaja melody. This song reminds you of various other songs by Ilaiyaraaja but is still extremely soothing to hear. Chitra and Rahul Nambiar’s perfect singing takes the song to greater heights. Great lyrics and the wonderfully simplistic picturisation also helps this feel-good romantic melody, which was one of the high points of the movie. I have been constantly listening to this song from the time it released and I still love it as much. It was a tough decision to move this song to No.2 position as this one also was equally deserving for the No.1 position.

1. Anuraga Vilochananayi (Neelathamara)
Music – Vidyasagar
Lyrics – Vayalar Sarath Chandra Varma
Singers – V Shreekumar, Shreya Ghoshal
Picturised on – Kailash, Archana Kavi
This song is a blockbuster. The caller tune of every other person in our state is this song. It has fascinated the youth and the elders alike. The new singer V Shreekumar now has lots of fans for his unique voice and delivery. Shreya Ghoshal as always is pitch-perfect in her singing. Lal Jose, Vijay Ulaganath and team recreate the romance of the 70s through some spectacular visuals. The pairing of the newcomers Archana and Kailash is very  refreshing. After a long time, a Malayalam song is being celebrated inside the theatres for every show. Such a rage was seen the last time maybe for ‘Ente Khalbile’ or ‘Kolakkuzhal Vili Ketto’. So this song, which also marked the glorious comeback of our favourite composer Vidyasagar, unanimously gains the No.1 spot.

P.S. – The theme song ‘Kadhayamama’ from Kerala Cafe missed being in this list by a very small margin.