Kya Soch Raha Re - Mela by Lata Mangeshkar

Lata Mangeshkar has delivered memorable performances before, but Kya Soch Raha Re - Mela sits comfortably among the very best. R. D. Burman sets the tone from the very first bar — it is clear from the opening notes that this song means business.

Lata Mangeshkar understood what this song required and delivered it without excess — the restraint itself becomes the emotion. Hearing Kya Soch Raha Re - Mela without thinking of a talented ensemble cast is almost impossible for anyone who has seen Mela.

1971 marked the release of Mela, and Kya Soch Raha Re - Mela was the track that ensured the album would be remembered. There is no right time to listen to Kya Soch Raha Re - Mela. There is only the moment you press play and realise it was the right choice.

Running to 4:56, the song is exactly as long as it needs to be, which is the hardest length for a songwriter to find. It is, at the end of it, a very good song — and sometimes that is the only explanation that matters.