Top Indian Music Directors of All Times

Let’s look at some of the top Indian music directors who have been blessing us with great art of music for decades. There are many great musicians but these are some of the most recognized musicians who gave many legendary tracks of all time. I apologize in advance if I miss some, it is totally based on the records available online and there are so many who are loved by different audience.

Note: This list is not showing any orders. All of the music directors and composers are legendary and are appreciated for their unique work.

1. S D Burman

Sachin Dev Burman (1906 – 1975) was an Indian music director and singer. He started his career with Bengali films in 1937. He later began composing for Hindi movies and became one of the most successful and influential Bollywood film music composers. Burman composed the soundtracks for over 100 movies, including Bengali films and Hindi. Apart from being a versatile composer, he also sang songs in the light semi-classical and folk style of Bengal.

Burman paired with tabla maestro late Brajen Biswas for his Bengali songs. The beats or “thekas” created by Brajen Babu for these songs are unique and no one in the world can sing these songs in the original “thekas“. All the “thekas” are according to the mood of the songs. Burman also had a unique style of composing film songs. While most of the composers used a harmonium or piano to compose the tune, he composed tunes using rhythm such as clapping hands.

SD Burman had a legendary and inspiring journey as a musician from 1930s to 1970s and won numerous awards such as National Film Awards, Padma Shri Award, International Jury on Folk Music which are some of the most prestigious awards.

2. Saraswati Devi

Saraswati Devi, born Khorshed Minocher-Homji (1912 – 1980), was an Indian director of music and score composer who worked in Hindi cinema in the 1930s and 1940s. She is most noted for her score, Mein Ban ki Chiriyra Banke Bun Bun Bolun Re in Bombay Talkies’s Achut Kanya (1936). She is considered to be one of the first female music composers in Indian cinema.

Her first assignment was for the movie, Jawani Ki Hawa in 1935 which was followed by her first hit movie Achut Kanya (1936). In 1936, she gave the music for the film, Janmabhoomi, it was released during the Indian independence movement, and featured one of the first explicit nationalistic songs of Hindi cinema, Jai Jai Janani Janmabhoomi. 

Despite facing many challenges as a female composer, Devi continued composing film music until 1961. She composed the song Koi Humdum Na Raha originally sung by Ashok Kumar in the film Jeevan Naiya (1936) and later sung by Kishore Kumar in Jhumroo (1961). She is also the original composer of famous song Ek Chatur Naar Kar Ke Shringar originally sung by Ashok Kumar in film Jhoola (1941) later sung by Manna Dey and Kishore Kumar in film Padosan which is still popular among the Indian audience.

3. Naushad

Naushad Ali (26 December 1919 – 5 May 2006) was an Indian music director for Hindi films. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest and foremost music directors of the Hindi film industry. He is particularly known for popularizing the use of classical music in films.

Naushad ji composed for his first independent film Prem Nagar in 1940. It was Rattan (1944) that took Naushad right to the top. From 1942 until the late 1960s, he was one of the top music directors in Hindi films. While he did 65 films during his lifetime, 26 of those films celebrated Silver jubilees, 8 celebrated golden jubilees and 4 celebrated diamond jubilees. The songs Naushad composed for the 1988 Malayalam film Dhwani which were sung by P. Suseela & K. J. Yesudas are evergreen superhits.

Mother India (1957), for which he had composed music, was the first Indian film that got nominated for an Oscar award. In 1981, Naushad was awarded the Dadasaheb Phalke Award for his lifetime contribution to Indian cinema.

4. Laxmikant-Pyarelal

Laxmikant–Pyarelal were an Indian composer duo, consisting of Laxmikant Shantaram Kudalkar (1937–1998) and Pyarelal Ramprasad Sharma (born 1940). They are considered among the most successful composers in Hindi film history and composed music for about 750 Hindi movies. Became assistants to Kalyanji-Anandji and worked with them as assistants till 1963, they worked as music arrangers for many music directors including Sachin Dev Burman (in Ziddi).

The first released movie which featured them as music directors was Babubhai Mistry’s Parasmani (1963). All the songs of the film became immensely popular, espacially “Hasata Hua Nurani Chehara“, “Wo Jab Yaad Aaye” and “Mere Dil Main Halki Si“. Other hits by Laxmikant-Pyarelal included songs like “Chahoonga Main Tujhe Shaam Savere” and “Rahi Manwa” from the film Dosti and others like Aaye Din Bahar Ke, Aya Sawan Jhoom Ke, Mere Hamdam Mere Dost, Jeene Ki Raah, Dharam Veer, Amar Akbar Anthony, Sargam, Lootera and many more.

Laxmikant-Pyarelal worked with some of the most popular and successful singers like Lata Mangeshkar, Asha Bhosle, Muhammed Rafi and Kishore Kumar.

Laxmikant–Pyarelal composed Indian classical music as well as Western music; they were most popular for their folk tunes and semi-classical music. For Shagird, they composed Rock-n-Roll style melodies, and in Karz the music is closer to disco. For this film they wrote a Westernized version of a Ghazal, “Dard-e-dil Dard-e- jigar”, and they received the Filmfare Best Music Director Award for the year.

5.  Omkar Prasad Nayyar

Omkar Prasad Nayyar (1926-2007) was an Indian Film music composer, singer-songwriter, music producer and musician. He was known as most rhythmic and melodious music director. Some of his earliest works includes tracks for the movies Aar Paar (1954), Mr. and Mrs. ’55 (1955) and C.I.D (1956). He could play various instruments like Piano, Dholak, Keyboard and Drums.

Omkar Prasad Nayyar co-produced the famous track Kajra Mohabbatwala which is still enjoyed by people and radios with Shamshad Begum (One of the first singers in Hindi Films). He also produced the track Yeh Desh Hai Veer Jawaano Kaa for the movie Naya Daur. This song is still played specially on Indian National Republic Days and Independence Days.

6. Usha Khanna

Usha Khanna is an Indian music director in Hindi cinema. She is the third female music director to enter the Hindi film industry and is one of the most commercially successful music directors in the male dominated music industry.

Usha Khanna is most known for songs like Hum tum say juda ho ke (1965),  Chhodo kal ki baatein, Shaayad meri shaadi ka khayal, Zindagi pyaar ka geet hai and Aap to aise na the. She is still active making some music for some movies and television-serials, more than 40 years after her debut as music director in Dil Deke Dekho (1959).

Many of Usha Khanna’s songs are still very popular. Usha Khanna has given music to non-Hindi movies such as the Malayalam movie Moodal Manju (1969) is still remembered for some of the finest songs in Malayalam.

She gave the chance to the singers who were little known at that time – Anupama Deshpande, Pankaj Udhas, Hemlata, Mohammed Aziz, Roop Kumar Rathod, Shabbir Kumar, and Sonu Nigam. Many of them are now very successful.

7. Kalyanji-Anandji

Kalyanji–Anandji are an Indian composer duo: Kalyanji Virji Shah (1928 – 2000) and his brother Anandji Virji Shah (1933). The duo are known for their work on Hindi film soundtracks, with many evergreen songs being composed by them.

Some of their best-known works are for the movies Don, Bairaag, Saraswatichandra, Qurbani, Muqaddar Ka Sikandar, Laawaris, Tridev, Safar, etc. They won the 1975 Filmfare Award for Best Music Director for Kora Kagaz.

Kalyanji, with his brother Anandji, started an orchestral group called Kalyanji Virji and Party which organised musical shows in Mumbai and outside. This was the first attempt made for holding live musical shows in India.

Kalyanji-Anandji’s arrival in the Bombay film industry as music composers was a turning point. When big music directors like S. D. Burman, Naushad and O. P. Nayyar were ruling the Hindi film music world and it was a golden period of film music, it was very tough to make a place amongst them. They still managed to attain success amongst the competition.

8. Vishal-Shekhar

Vishal & Shekhar are an Indian music composer, production, singer & songwriting duo consisting of Vishal Dadlani and Shekhar Ravjiani from Mumbai. Known predominantly for their work as music composers in Hindi cinema, Vishal–Shekhar have also recorded in Telugu, Marathi and English, with the likes of Akon, The Vamps, Imogen Heap, Diplo.

They have been featured on over 350 film sound tracks, including Jhankaar Beats (2003), Dus(2005), Bluffmaster (2005), Salaam Namaste (2005), Left Right Left (2006), Om Shanti Om (2007), Tashan (2008), Bachna Ae Haseeno (2008), Dostana (2008), I Hate Luv Storys (2010) , Anjaana Anjaani (2010), Tees Maar Khan (2010), Ra.One (2011), Student of the Year (2012), Chennai Express (2013), Hasee Toh Phasee (2014), Bang Bang! (2014), Happy New Year (2014), Sultan (2016), Befikre (2016), Tiger Zinda Hai (2017), Student of the Year 2 (2019), Bharat (2019), War (2019) & Baaghi 3 (2020).

Vishal Dadlani is also the vocalist of Mumbai-based electronic band Pentagram. He has also written the lyrics of many their compositions like Ajab Si from movie Om Shanti Om and Hairat Hai from movie Anjaana Anjaani. Shekhar Ravjiani is a trained classical singer (under Ustad Niaz Ahmed Khan). He learned to play the accordion from his father, a music enthusiast, Hasmukh Ravjiani. Shekhar was a participant of Zee TV singing contest Sa Re Ga Ma Pa in 1997.

Also Read: Exploring Musical Notations Across Countries

9. A R Rahman

Allah Rakha Rahman (born A. S. Dileep Kumar in 1967) is an Indian film composer, record producer, singer and songwriter who works predominantly in Tamil and Hindi films. Along with his major contributions in Indian music industries, Rahman also made a big name outside India, in Asian and Western industries with his various projects.

His soundtracks are known in the Tamil Nadu film industry and abroad for his versatility in combining Western classical music, Carnatic and Tamil traditional and folk-music traditions, jazz, reggae and rock music.

Rahman’s first film soundtrack was for Mani Ratnam’s Tamil film, Roja, which became major success. His other hits from Tamil films were from Bombay, the urban Kadhalan, Thiruda Thiruda and film Gentleman. The soundtrack for Bombay sold 15 million copies worldwide and It was featured in the 2002 Palestinian film Divine Intervention and the 2005 Nicolas Cage film, Lord of War. Rahman also scored the Mandarin-language film Warriors of Heaven and Earth in 2003 after researching and using Chinese and Japanese classical music.

He debuted in Bollywood with the film Rangeela followed by other hits such as Dil se, Taal, Chaiyya Chaiyya, Rang de Basanti and more. His music for film Jaane Tu Yaa Jaane naa was popular in youth in India and film Jodha Akhbar won critical acclaim.

In 1992 when he started Panchathan Record Inn, a recording and mixing studio in his backyard which would become the most-advanced recording studio in India. In 2005 Rahman expanded his Panchathan Record Inn studio by establishing AM Studios in Chennai, creating the most cutting-edge studio in Asia. He also started his own music label, KM Music.

In 2010, the Indian government awarded him the Padma Bhushan, the nation’s third-highest civilian award. Among Rahman’s awards are six National Film Awards, two Academy Awards, two Grammy Awards, a BAFTA Award, a Golden Globe Award, fifteen Filmfare Awards and seventeen Filmfare Awards South.

Rahman has also become a humanitarian and philanthropist, donating and raising money for a number of causes and charities. In 2006, he was honored by Stanford University for his contributions to global music. He received Lifetime Achievement Award from the Rotary Club of Madras in 2008.

In 2009, he was included on the Time list of the world’s 100 most influential people. He introduced 7.1 surround sound technology to South Indian films. In 2014, he was awarded an honorary doctorate from Berklee College of Music in 2013. Rahman has numerous achievements as a musician world wide.

10. Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy

Shankar–Ehsaan–Loy is an Indian musical trio consisting of Shankar Mahadevan, Ehsaan Noorani and Loy Mendonsa. Their entry to mainstream cinema was with Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s Mission Kashmir, which was a musical hit and earned the trio a place in the Bollywood film industry.

 

They have composed music for over 50 soundtracks across five languages: Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Marathi and English. Amongst the most critically acclaimed Indian musicians, the trio have won numerous awards, including National Film Award (India), Filmfare Awards, and IIFA Awards.

Their Major hits include music for movies Dil Chahta Hai, Kal Ho Naa Ho, Bunty or Bubli, Don: The Chase Begins Again, Salaam-e-Ishq, Heyy Babyy, Johnny Gaddaar, Tare Zameen Par, Luck by Chance, Rock-on, Wake-up Sid, My Name is Khan etc.

11. Jatin-Lalit

Jatin–Lalit are an Indian music director duo consisting of Jatin Pandit and his brother Lalit Pandit. They have written the widely popular scores for films. Some of them got awards like Zee Cine Award for Best Music Director, Star Screen Award for Best Music Director, Bollywood Movie Award – Best Music Director

They began their career in 1991, composing music for the Hindi movie Yaara Dildara which was the biggest hit. The evergreen famous song of the movie was “Bin Tere Sanam”, which topped the charts. They were first noticed for their work on the song Pehla Nasha, a romantic song from Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikander, the film that earned them their first nomination for the Filmfare Award for Best Music Director. Their other films were, Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman, Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa, the classic Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, Khamoshi: The Musical (1996), Yes Boss (1997), Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, Mohobbatein, Sarfarosh, Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gum, Hum Tum, Chalte Chalte, Fanna and many more.

12. Pritam

Pritam Chakraborty (1971), commonly known as Pritam, is an Indian composer, instrumentalist, guitarist and singer. At the beginning of his career, Pritam composed renowned jingles for brands like Santro,  McDonald’s, Head & Shoulders, Thums Up, Limca, Complan and composed title tracks for TV serials such as Astitva, Kkavyanjali, Ye Meri Life Hai, Remix, Kashmeer, Miilee, and Dil Kya Kare.

Pritam had built a name for his compositions by finely blending Indian classical music with western influences. This made his music different and became a success among youth. His compositions for movie Dhoom were a runaway hit. The title-track of Dhoom in two versions – Hindi (by Sunidhi Chauhan) and English (by Tata Young), broke geographic barriers becoming popular in pubs in the UK, USA and the East Asia. Gangster, Dhoom 2, Life in a Metro, Love Aaj Kal, Jab We Met, Once upon a Time in Mumbai, Crook, Golmaal 3, Bodyguard, Race 2, Murder 3, Yeh Jawani Hai Deewani, Dhoom 3 and so many more.

Though Pritam’s music is loved and highly appreciated by the Indian audience, he was also been alleged to have plagiarized numerous songs from the beginning of his film music career. He addressed them by saying “I made mistakes initially.. ” in an interview with Hindustan Times.

13. Sneha Khanwalkar

Sneha Khanwalkar is an Indian music director who works in Hindi films. She is best known for her score for the film, Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye!, and also for Gangs of Wasseypur Part 1, Part 2. She had been nominated in Best Music Director category at the 58th Filmfare Awards for Gangs of Wasseypur Part 1 & Part 2.

She is second woman to gain a nomination in this category 28 years after Usha Khanna. Her big break came when she composed music for the 2007 movie Go, produced by Ram Gopal Varma, and also got to compose a song for Sarkar Raj.

 

Read about Indian music in this beautifully written, full of anecdotes, gossip and legend, book called The Music Room by Namita Devidayal.