1 ‘Kya Yehi Pyar Hai’ — Rocky (1981)
Sanjay Dutt’s debut film, Rocky (1981) featured this romantic duet of Lata Mangeshkar and Kishore Kumar. RD Burman teamed up with Anand Bakshi once again to create a successful soundtrack. The song was picturised on Dutt and Tina Munim.
2 ‘Yeh Kahaan Aa Gaye Hum’ — Silsila (1981)
For Yash Chopra’s romantic saga starring Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bachchan, Rekha and Sanjeev Kumar, Lata Mangeshkar sang several key songs on the soundtrack composed by Shiv-Hari. ‘Yeh Kahaan Aa Gaye Hum’ was written by Javed Akhtar (who turned lyricist with this film), Mangeshkar's voice was mixed in with Bachchan's fiery voiceover throughout the song.
3 ‘Tujhse Naraaz Nahin Zindagi (Female)’ — Masoom (1982)
In the female version of ‘Tujhse Naraaz Nahin Zindagi’ in Shekhar Kapur’s Masoom, Lata Mangeshkar brought real emotion to RD Burman’s score. The song, written by Gulzar, was picturised on Shabana Azmi who deftly showcased the struggles of her character. Gulzar won the Filmfare Award for Best Lyricist for the song, while RD Burman too picked up the Best Music Director award.
4 ‘Aye Dil-E-Nadaan’ — Razia Sultan (1983)
For Kamal Amrohi’s ambitious project starring Hema Malini, the director roped in music composer Khayyam. The soulful Lata Mangeshkar solo ‘Aye Dil-E-Nadaan’ was written by Jan Nisar Akhtar and picturised on Hema Malini.
5 ‘Jab Hum Jawan Honge’ — Betaab (1983)
In yet another feature that launched newcomers, Betaab starred Sunny Deol and Amrita Singh. Shabbir Kumar became the voice of Deol while Lata Mangeshkar was the voice of Singh. The song ‘Jab Hum Jawan Honge’ was nominated for Best Lyrics at the Filmfare Awards, but did not win. The hit team of RD Burman and Anand Bakshi were behind the music of the film.
6 ‘Saagar Kinare’ — Saagar (1985)
Rishi Kapoor and Dimple Kapadia who made their debut together in Bobby (1973) reunited again 12 years later in Ramesh Sippy’s Saagar. The pleasing romantic duet was sung by Lata and Kishore Kumar. RD Burman was the music composer while Javed Aktar wrote the lyrics of the film.
7 ‘Main Teri Dushman, Dushman Tu Mera’ — Nagina (1986)
Thirty-two years after the musical success of Nagin (1954), Lata Mangeshkar returned to sing ‘Main Teri Dushman’ for Sridevi in Nagina. The blockbuster hit featured only five songs but it was Mangeshkar's version that still remains a classic.
8 ‘Kabootar Ja Ja Ja’ — Maine Pyar Kiya (1989)
The lilting duet ‘Kabootar Ja Ja Ja’, written by Dev Kohli, sung Lata Mangeshkar and SP Balasubramaniam was an integral part of music composer Raamlaxman’s award-winning album. The blockbuster turned Salman Khan and Bhagyashree into household names at the time.
9 ‘Bada Dukh Dina O Ramji’ — Ram Lakhan (1989)
Subhash Ghai assembled most of his multi-star cast for the song ‘Bada Dukh Dina O Ramji’ sung by Lata Mangeshkar. Madhuri Dixit took centre stage in the number composed by Laxmikant-Pyarelal and written by Anand Bakshi.
10 ‘Mere Haathon Mein’ — Chandni (1989)
Yash Chopra and Shiv-Hari brought back melody to Hindi film music with the critical and commerical success of the Chandni (1989) soundtrack. The number sung by Lata, ‘Mere Haathon Mein’ was written by Anand Bakshi and quickly became the rage at wedding functions.
Lata Mangeshkar's best songs 1970s: Birthday series Part 3
Lata Mangeshkar's best songs 1940s-50s: Birthday series Part 2
Lata Mangeshkar's best songs 1940s-50s: Birthday series Part 1