Top Song for 2011?

What are the top 6 songs out of South Asia in 2011?

Here are Thamarai.com’s top 6 songs out of South Asia (India to be more precise). They have been simply positioned according to the views they have received on youtube.com. Some songs have duplicate videos added onto youtube, we have totalled up the views and here are the results. We are sure that our chart would share some similarities with charts that have used more specific methods of calculating positions. One common theme keeps recurring, they all seem to have a southern (South India / Tamil) connection. Does this mean that if you want a song or even the film to be successful, you have to add a little Southern spice into the mix!

NUMBER SIX! Ooh la la tu hai meri fantasy, from the Vidya Balan starrer "The Dirty Picture". The song has so far received over 3.5 million views and it’s only been up for a few months. So what’s the Southern connection? Vidya Balan is a Tamil actress from Kerala and the film which the song is from, is based on the life of Silk Smitha, a popular, sultry actress from Chennai who starred in a few risque productions in the 80s.

NUMBER FIVE! Chikni Chameli from the Hindi film, “Agneepath” starring Hrithik Roshan, Priyanka Chopra, Sanjay Dutt & Rishi Kapoor. The song released a few weeks ago and has already amassed over 8.75 million hits. So what’s the Southern connection? 2011 has seen Dapang Kuthu, the beat of South India break into Bollywood music. After the success of the Bodyguard title song, this is the second time we get to see Katrina Kaif get down to some Kuthu!

NUMBER FOUR! Dhinka Chikka from the Hindi film “Ready” starring Salman Khan & Asin. The music video was released back in May 2011 and has amassed over 14 million views. So what’s the Southern connection? This song has a few! Ready is a remake of the 2008 Telugu film off the same title. The Hindi version stars the popular Tamil actress Asin and the song “Dhinka Chikka,” just like “Chikni chameli” fuses the very popular Dapang Kuthu beat of the south with Hindi lyrics.

NUMBER THREE! Teri meri prem kahani from the Hindi language film “Bodyguard” starring Salman Khan & Kareena Kapoor. This song is sung by Rahet Rateh Ali Khan & Shreya Ghoshal, and composed by Himesh Reshammiya. Is there are a southern connection? The only connection is that the film is another Southern rework, this time the 2010 Malayalam film of the same title. With over 36 million views across youtube, this is the only slow number on our list.

NUMBER TWO! Chamak Challo from the Shah Rukh Khan & Kareena Kapoor starrer “RaOne.” Chamak Challo is number 2 on our list with over 42 million views. The song was an instant hit in Bollywood, featuring international recording artiste “Akon” singing a couple of lines in Hindi. So what’s the southern connection? The song has a couple of connections, first Shah Rukh Khan plays the role of a South Indian games designer in the film. The music video features a very southern theme with the dress code and dance routines, and the final song has a couple of lines in Tamil.

NUMBER ONE! Why this Kolaveri di? Taking the crown from Shah Rukh Khan is Tamil actor/singer Dhanush with this viral “Soup Song!” This is number 1 on our list simply because it has amassed over 45 million views on youtube.com and inspired over 35 different versions in different languages and genres. All this in just over a month, and the views keep rising! Yesterday CNN International named it the world’s top song of 2011! So what’s the southern connection? The song is from the 2012 Tamil film titled “3” starring Dhanush & Shruti Hassan. A quirky song which is sung in Tanglish (Tamil & English), incorporating once again Dapang Kuthu (Tamil folk) which in the last decade has gained popularity in Tamil cinema. The song fuses traditional South Indian instruments including the Thavil, urumee & Nadeswaram with shehnai, saxophone, acoustic guitar and the keyboard. Coupled with the simple video & subtitles, the song has become a hit!

This is our list for 2011. Hope you enjoyed it!