Songs about cold weather have been used often in Hindi films, and the term ‘thandi hawa’ has been a favourite among lyricists. Here, we choose 10 songs using the words ‘thandi’ or ‘hawa’.
Interestingly, all these songs are over 50 years old. The quality of this type seems to have deteriorated after that, and only songs like Hassan Jehangir’s ‘Hawa Hawa’ come to mind. The order is chronological.Â
1 Hawa Mein Udta Jaaye – Barsaat (1949)
One of Lata Mangeshkar’s early hits, it was filmed on Bimla Kumari. Shankar-Jaikishen provided the music. The lyrics were by Ramesh Shastri, who began, “Hawa mein udta jaaye mora laal dupatta malmal ka ho ji ho ji, idhar udhar lehraye mora laal dupatta malmal ka ho ji ho ji”. Five decades later, the song was remixed by Bombay Vikings to mixed reactions.
2 Thandi Hawayein – Naujawan (1951)
An iconic song by S.D. Burman, it was sung immaculately by Lata. It was filmed on Nalini Jaywant with Premnath appearing in the flashback scene. Sahir Ludhianvi wrote, “Thandi hawayein, lehra ke aaye, rut hai jawaan, tum ko yahaan kaise bulayein”. The story has it that Burman got the tune after hearing a pianist play something similar at a hotel in Mumbai.
3 Yeh Hawa Yeh Raat Yeh Chandni – Sangdil (1952)
Composed by the fabulous Sajjad Hussain, it was one of the gems by Talat Mahmood, filmed on Dilip Kumar and Madhubala. Rajendra Krishan wrote, “Yeh hawa yeh raat yeh chandni, teri ek ada pe nisaar hai, mujhe kyon na ho teri arzoo, teri justjoo mein bahaar hai”. Sangdil was one of those rare films featuring all four leading female singers Lata, Shamshad Begum, Geeta Dutt and Asha Bhosle.
https://youtu.be/DUStnBNaH7I
4 Thandi Hawa Kali Ghata – Mr & Mrs 55 (1955)
From its picturisation, it neither looked like a winter song nor a rain song, despite the fancy umbrella dance. But it is catchy enough to pep up a cold and cloudy January day. Geeta Dutt sang for Madhubala, with O.P. Nayyar composing. Majrooh Sultanpuri wrote, “Thandi hawa kaali ghata, aa hi gayee jhoom ke, pyaar liye doli hasee, naache jiya ghoom ke”.
5 Thandi Hawa Yeh Chandni – Jhumroo (1961)
It looked like ‘thandi hawa’ songs were tailor-made for Madhubala. Here, she was paired opposite Kishore Kumar, who also composed and sang the song. Majrooh wrote, “Thandi hawa yeh chandni suhani, ae mere dil suna koi kahani, lambi si ek dagar hai zindagani, ae mere dil suna koi kahani”.
https://youtu.be/QTTMNSUHPgA
6 In Hawaon Mein – Gumrah (1963)
With Sunil Dutt and Mala Sinha dressed in 1960s cold weather attire, and snowcapped mountains in the distance, this looked like a typical winter song. Ravi composed the music and Asha and Mahendra Kapoor teamed up on the duet. Sahir wrote, “In hawaon mein, in fizaon mein, in hawaon mein, in fizaon mein, tujh ko mera pyaar pukare ho”.
7 Jab Chali Thandi Hawa – Do Badan (1967)
Asha Bhosle sang this beauty filmed on Asha Parekh and Manoj Kumar. Music was by Ravi and Shakeel Badayuni wrote, “Jab chali thandi hawa, jab uthi kaali ghata, mujhko ae jaan-e-wafa tum yaad aaye”. Talking of ‘yaad’, the film also had the Lata classic ‘Lo Aa Gayee Unki Yaad Woh Nahin Aaye”.
8 Hawaon Pe Likh Do – Do Dooni Char (1968)
The song was an ode to nature penned by Gulzar. But it could also work well in a winter mood. Sung and picturised on Kishore, it was composed by Hemant Kumar. The lyrics were, “Hawaon pe likh do hawaon ke naam, hum anjaan pardesiyon ka salaam”.
9 Mujhko Thand Lag Rahi Hai – Main Sundar Hoon (1971)
This was the only film where music directors Shankar-Jaikishen collaborated with lyricist Anand Bakshi. Kishore and Asha sung the song filmed on Biswajeet and Leena Chandavarkar in hilly terrain. The song began, “Mujhko thand lag rahi hai mujhse door tu na ja” to which the male voice replied, “Aag dil mein lagi mere paas tu na aa”.
https://youtu.be/k8gVuQNmkPU
10 Sunja Aa Thandi Hawa – Haathi Mere Saathi (1971)
This is probably the only song in history where the hero and heroine were filmed entirely in swinging hammocks tied to trees. Rajesh Khanna and Tanuja looked a perfect pair as they swayed to this Laxmikant-Pyarelal song sung by Kishore and Lata. Bakshi wrote, “Sunja aa thandi hawa, aaha thamja ae kali ghata, kuch pyaari pyaari baatein hamari, aa jaate jaate tu bhi sunja”.
Those were 10 ‘thandi hawa’ songs. If you want to enjoy the cold weather even more and experience some snowy weather, we had prepared a list of 10 snow songs a year ago. The link is https://seniorstoday.in/music/top-10-snow-songs
