Top Indian Songs of the week 19th February 2023

Here are the best songs released in India across languages and genres for the week ending 19th February 2023. 

If you are a musician submit your new music  with a clickable link on my Home Page 

1. Rijhaaun

Composition, Lyrics and Vocals - Utsavi Jha 

Production, Mix and Master - Manav

Language: Hindi

Genre: Jazz/Pop

She is one undeniable talent and it shows when someone like Utsavi Jha gets featured time and again every time she releases a single. Now I can confidently say that this is her best work yet and I wish her the best to keep making my life better with such music. Utsavi is a young, inquisitive singer-songwriter from Mumbai and she has composed the melody, written the lyrics and rendered the vocals for this brilliant song. 

When Utsavi teams up with some spectacular musicians, a very good song automatically gets pulled into a higher orbit and first and foremost is the mastermind Manav who has produced the song with incredible prowess. The song starts with just the Piano and Utsavi's vocals, with the Piano hitting some fantastic notes and within a minute we discover that the song's inherent melody is quite enjoyable. Manav's typical indulgence comes to the forefront with the Piano and what sounds like a Pipe Organ intervention. It all has a very Jazz and Blues texture. Listen to the fantastic saxophone in the background played by Aniket Chaturvedi. 

The drums, and the vocal harmonies, are all important elements, but nothing quite matches the saxophone solo in the interlude and we also hear trumpets making it one unforgettable song that deserves to take the number 1 spot. The arrangements and programming tend to steal the limelight, but let us not forget the vocals and the stylist delivery by Utsavi. Manav also does the mixing and mastering for the track, and the vocals are recorded at PLayhead Studion in Mumbai. The animation and editing are by Suraj Singh and Hariom. Priya Waingankar is the photo editor. 

@utsavijhamusic @man.musical @deffective_priya @lazyom @singhsuraj88

2. Dheemi

Performed by - Ashish Zachariah

Written by - Ashish Zachariah, Khwaab, Ritvik Kulshrestha

Produced by - Ashish Zachariah

Language: Hindi

Genre: Electronic Pop

Asish Zachariah is probably of the top 5 music composers/producers in the country today. We are living in a very dark time where mediocre music gets superlative recognition, and amidst this guys like Ashish are like the canary in the coal mine. We have to treasure them not only for their talent but their unswerving commitment to giving us good music.

I just played the song and despite the high bar, Ashish manages to cross it without any trouble at all. Another fantastic musician Nishant Nagar a.k.a. has penned the lyrics along with Ritvik Kulshrestha. Ashish composes, sings and produces this blinder. The flowy guitars come and go in layers and Ashish enhances the effect with layers of vocals also. 

There is so much to focus on, as we have a brilliant production on display here, and just like he sings " kaali kaali raaton mein phir milein". The heart starts racing as we hear the sound of the strings section in the background, along with a solo violin also gathering steam. Such music I believe can transport us to a parallel universe where we live forever without even an iota of pain. Ashish uses the synths and keyboards to great effect and the adrenaline-pumping drums give a fitting end to matters. The track is mixed to perfection by an outstanding musician Rex Vijayan, and Steve Smart does the mastering. Tina Thomas handles the covert art. Ashish and team, take a bow!

 @ashish.zachariah @khwaab.music @ritvkk93 @rex_vijayan @stevemartmastered @tinaalicethomas 

3. Bawaral Ra

Music - Devdutta Manisha Baji 

Vocals - Ashish Kulkarni & Aanandi Joshi 

Lyrics - Ganesh Nigade

Music Arrangements & Production - Devdutta Manisha Baji & Bhushan Chitnis

Language: Marathi

Genre: Filmi Melody

I have never even heard of Devdutta Manisha Baji, and I am thrilled to feature this composer's melody in Marathi. It is sung by two renowned singers Ashish Kulkarni and Aanandi Joshi, both of whom I have featured on my weekly charts before. It is so refreshing to see a new musician compose so well in Marathi, a space dominated by the genius of Ajay-Atul and AV Prafullachandra. I am also excited to see some very familiar names here in various roles, all of whom I have featured in various indie projects.

 Ashish Kulkarni became a household name after his stint at Indian Idol, but he has been featured for his singles by me much before. He and producer/guitarist Bhushan Chitnis have worked together on indie singles as well. We have the guitars by Bhushan followed by the female harmonies comprising Malavika Dixit, Bhagyashree Abhyankar, Nidhi Hegde. Then comes the male chorus sung by Chinmay Jog, Ajit Vispute and Srujan Kulkarni. The solo Violin gives me an inkling that there is a Raag Bhimpalasi flavour just mildly. It is played with such elegance by Shruti Bhave. 

Ashish Kulkarni is so endearing with his vocals and he is matched equally by Anandi Joshi. The song has some excellent notes that make it so fresh and complete. Varad Kathapurkar plays the Flute and another point of attraction is the live percussion by Onkar Ingawale & Apurv Dravid. The song moves into the stanza without any interlude and you don't feel anything missing thanks to the immaculate arrangements and production by Devdutta and Bhushan with Srujan working on additional arrangements. 

The stanza only further reinforces the beauty of the song's original melody. Nikhil Laniekar and Himanshu Ambekar handle the sound design with recoding engineers Avadhoot Wadkar, Tushar Pandit, Roopjit Das, and Ajinkya Dhapare is the mixing engineer assisted by Virat Bhushetty. The stereo track mastering is done by Hanish Taneja. The lyrics are penned by Ganesh Nigade. 

@ganeshnigade88 @aanandijoshi @ashishkulkarni.music @devdutta.baji.music @bhushan_bhu_chitnis @srujan_kulkarni @nidhihegde.music @violinshrutibhave @varadflute_official @mixedbyhanish @ajinkyadhapare @omkar_ingawale_official @apurvdravid @pandit_dawn 

4. Kevadyacha Paan Tu

Music & BGM - Vijay Narayan Gavande

Lyrics - Guru Thakur

Singers - Ajay Gogavale, Arya Ambaekar

Music Production - Avi Lohar

Language: Marathi

Genre: Filmi Melody/Pathos

Marathi movies and music space have been right at the very top in India thanks to some excellent artists and technicians. Here we have two Marathi songs in the top 4 and both composers are new to me. This song is composed by Vijay Narayan Gavande, with Avi Lohar being the producer. We have fabulous vocalists in Aarya Ambaekar and Ajay Gogavale warming our hearts with their singing. I feel like there is some minor influence of Raag Pilu (Kaapi in Carnatic) in this song, especially the opening lines and parts of the interlude.

Paras Nath plays the flute solo and I can feel the brilliant bass guitars decorating the track. Jithender Jawda and his team embellish the interlude with a beautiful strings section. Pratap Rath plays the percussion instruments and the tempo helps in driving the pathos. But nothing comes close to Ajay's vocal tonality in delivering any melancholy and gloom. The song also feels like Ajay-Atul's 'Sairat Jhala ji'. 

Yogesh More plays the Shehnai in the interlude after a female chorus segment. The ethnic string instruments we hear are all played by Tapas Roy and thanks to all these live instruments, this feels like a very complete song. The mixing and mastering engineer is Ishan Devasthali and the sound engineers are Tushar Pandit, Sagar Sathe, Abhishek Kathe, Kittu Mayank, Parth Das and Rohan Mistry. 

@avilohar @parasnathflute @idevasthali @mandolintapas @pandit_dawn @jitendrahansrajjawda 

5. Josephine on the Floor

Written, composed, and performed by Karshni 

Produced by Dhruv Bhola and Shantanu Pandit 

Language: English

Genre: Ballad

Right towards the end of the day, when we are lacking in spirit and energy, nothing can really boost our spirits and make us feel alive again. Unless it is a music of the highest order, akin to what I heard on a Monday late evening. Karshni's song 'Josephine on the floor' started playing and I was floored by its sheer brilliance. She has written, composed and sung this track with Shantanu Pandit and Dhruv Bhola producing it. 

The last time I heard Karshni Nair was for a fantastic song called "The Same" from 'Modern Love Mumbai' sung by herself and Karsha Kale and composed by Neel Adhikari. It is just the guitars and her engrossing vocals that fill in the flavours of the song, Wait for the mild trumpet in the background played by Rohit Gupta to stun you. Many elements keep coming and going but Karshni stays true and sings with poise and pathos combined. 

Shantanu and Dhruv can be heard on the backing vocals, even as Dhruv plays the Keys and additional guitars. Nikhil Vasudevan is on point with the mild and slow drums fitting perfectly into the scheme of things. Karshni is on fire with her vocals and she keeps innovatively producing these falsettos and vibratos. Sanjay Das has mixed and Robin Shmidt has mastered the track. Vijay Sarathy handles the song art with Pagal Haina releasing the track. Krishna Rao is the recording engineer at LotusTree Studios. 

 @shatanman @lotustreestudios @pagalhaina @dhruv.bhola @aarohimehra @canvasoul 

6. Piya Re

Singer & Music Composer: Darshan Raval

Lyrics: Gurpreet Saini & Gautam G. Sharma

Music Producer: Lijo George

Language: Hindi

Genre: Folk Pop fusion

Recently I was listening to an interview of Utsavi Jha(her song is this week's top-ranked track) on one of the FM Radio stations where she picked a song of Darshan Raval and said that according to her Darshan was an important example of an indie musician who rose above all hurdles and even made a successful crossover into the movie-based music space. I have featured him once before, but this song is probably one of his best yet. 

Darshan has composed the melody and sung it with great finesse. Lijo George has produced the song and the wonderful lyrics are penned by Gurpreet Saini & Gautam G. Sharma. The combination of the song's melody with the Tabla and live rhythms is fantastic and we have Ishteyak Khan & Mushtaq Khan to thank for that. The title line is very catchy and sticks to the mind, and probably the male chorus helps as well with singers Farhan, Latesh Pujari, Hari Mishra and Rakesh Singh in the chorus. 

This feels like an AR Rahman or Salim-Sulaiman track with ravishing Kashmiri Folk influences. Taps Roy is the man behind those Strokes which sound like the Rubab. We also have Lijo George, Siddharth Amit Bhavsar and Prakriti Giri on additional backing vocals. The stanza is rich in quality and Darshan doesn't hold back either in his composition or singing and that is so refreshing. Tejas Vinchurkar stuns you with that mild flute in the background and we have some solid guitars by Arbaaz Khan and Roland Fernandes with Roland also on bass. 

My favourite line has to be "sach kahoon to door tum se zaraa sa main jab bhe hua", especially the way it ends abruptly with changing tempo. It is even better when the stanza ends as we hear a different version of " dil na lgiya ore piya" without any rhythms. Enjoy this wonderful song and play it on loop, because that is what this song deserves. The track is mixed and mastered by Shadab Rayeen assisted by Pukhraj and Anup and Kittu as the recording engineer. The recording is at Soundideaz Studios with vocals recorded ar DZ Studio. 

@darshanravaldz @indiemusiclabel @dj.lijo @gautidihatti @ghuggss @jaymehtagram @shadabrayeen @mandolintapas @ishteyakkhanofficial @rolandfernandes25 @musicwaala @flautist_tejas @prakriti_giri  

7. Teri Yaad

Performed, composed and written by: Aditya Rikhari

Music Production: MeloWine Productions

Language: Hindi

Genre: Indie Pop

I love it the most when a new track just captivates me and then later I find out that I have never heard of the musician's name before. I feel elated because of two reasons viz. 1) it feels like a discovery, having found a new talent and 2) it also feels like I have moved slowly away from ignorance. Teri Yaad is an absolute delight of a track and Aditya has written, composed and sung this beauty. 

It begins with just the guitars and then the Keyboards and within seconds you fall in love with the melody and lines " ek toh neend aati nahin, uspe teri yadein raat-raat bhar aaye". We have some fantastic keyboards and rhythm programming. After some hip-hop styled lines, we have more earworm with the lines "aayo ki raatein ab ye kaati nahin jaati". 

Aditya sings with a lot of oomph , and that drives the song into some serious likability. There is an impressive brief interlude and then a nice bridge section as well. The track is mixed by Apoorv Chak. 

@adityarikhari @vyrloriginals @universalmusicindia @sumitsingh_97 @

8. Blue Sweatshirt

Music - Trance Effect

Written and Composed - Sosang Lkr

Produced, Mixed and Mastered - Tongs Kichu (Ode Studio)

Language: English

Genre: Dance-Pop, Pop-Rock

There is abundant talent in this region of India, and some of the best English indie music comes from North East of the country. These young musicians understand how to create music that is both relevant to the times we live in, and at the same time original and inspired. 

Trance effect is one such amazing band from Nagaland and they are blessed with this fantastic lead vocalist Iuli Yeptho. Sosang Longkumer is the drummer, Tako Chang and Temsujungba Jamir play the guitars, Imnamaong Imchen is the bassist. If you want to take a peek into their brilliance just go listen to "Took me a while". The song here too has some scintillating vocals, guitars and drums and we are taken back to the 1990s of brilliant pop. 

This is music India can be proud of for matching up with the global content in this genre. The song is composed and written by Sosang Lkr with Tongs Kichu producing it and he is also the mixing and mastering engineer. 

@tranceeffectofficial @sosanglkr @tekalong_lkr @nobinaryrecords @tongskichu @iuli_yeptho @takochang4 @suprakman @temsujungba_jamir 

9. Kabhii

Performed by - Nishant Singh Rajput

Written by - Nishant Singh Rajput

Language: Hindi

Genre: Pop

Many musicians have started submitting their music directly on my website's homepage, and so can you if you are a musician. I would be more than delighted to listen and give my feedback. If I love it, ill be featuring it among India's best tracks of the week like this song here. Nishant Singh Rajput has written, composed and performed this. The song has some fantastic vocal harmonies and their arrangements are top-notch. 

The guitars, rhythms and melody keep us engaged as well but nothing quite compares to the beautiful harmonies. The harmonies are performed by Haston Rodrigues and Ritu Zied has produced the track. Ritu must be credited with some inspiring arrangements and you will realize this when you hear the guitars in one layer and then some Harmonica notes start playing as well in the interlude. The song is exemplary in exhibiting how musicians can work hard on arrangements and programming

@singnishantsingh @rituzeid_rz @hastonrodrigues @thats.it.akarsh 

10. Raat

Music by Rono

Lyrics by Rono, Abhijit Kachhap and Taab Arshad

Produced and Mixed by Rono

Language: Hindi

Genre: Ballad/Alt-Rock

Is it really possible to complete a list of India's best music without the presence of a Bangla musician? Well, Ronit Sarkar is Mumbai-based though and this guy seems to be like a polymath as he is not only a singer-songwriter but also a photographer and a videographer. Back in 2021, I featured him for a very engaging track called "Like a love song" and he is back again among the best with a dreamy number talking about a magical night. Rono has composed and performed with the lyrics written by Rono, Abhijit Kachhap and Taab Arshad. 

Just his trembling vocals, of a man, still feeling vulnerable facing his special person. I feel the love when he sings "khona hai jo khone do" and one can also hear the distant sounds of the guitar. Rono also does a commendable job producing the track without overdoing any element. The rhythms and keyboard programming are spot-on aiding the tone of the song. 

Dhir Mody slowly plays the drums. The song feels like an Alt-rock single by Coldplay. I was also very impressed with the vocal harmonies. Soutrik ‘Zico’ Chakraborty and Apurv Agarwal do the additional mix tech with Rono himself acting as the mixing engineer. The track is mastered by Andy Walter at Abbey Road Studios. 

@rabbitbucket @awkwardbong @dhir.mody @zeek_zico @taaabus