Updated October 2026: this article has been expanded into a full guide to the English Vinglish soundtrack, covering every song's singers, what the songs do in the film and the Marathi wedding number at its centre. Gaurav Aradhye's original 2012 review is preserved in full further down the page.
English Vinglish (2012) has six songs on its Hindi soundtrack, all composed by Amit Trivedi with lyrics by Swanand Kirkire. Shilpa Rao sings the female version of the title song and Gustakh Dil, Amit Trivedi sings Dhak Dhuk and the male title song, Clinton Cerejo and Bianca Gomes sing Manhattan, and Navrai Majhi, the Marathi wedding song, is led by Sunidhi Chauhan with Swanand Kirkire, Natalie Di Luccio and Neelambari Kirkire. The album was released on 1 September 2012, about five weeks before the film opened in India on 5 October 2012. Trivedi also wrote the background score.
If you arrived here searching for "Nana Chi Tang", that song is not on this album: it comes from Khatta Meetha (2010), and our original review mentions it as an earlier Hindi film song with Marathi lines. There is a short explanation further down.
English Vinglish Songs List: Singers and Lyricist
The Hindi album runs 28 minutes 47 seconds. The film was also released in Tamil and Telugu, with lyrics by Pa. Vijay (Tamil) and Krishna Chaitanya (Telugu) set to the same tunes. Videos for the female title song, Navrai Majhi, Dhak Dhuk, Gustakh Dil and Manhattan are embedded in the original review below, so only the missing track is added here.
- English Vinglish, female version (English Vinglish, 2012): sung by Shilpa Rao, 4:34. The title song, which our 2012 review lists by its opening words as "Badala Nazara". It plays with the film's own joke of echoing a word with a rhyming "v" version, over guitar, mandolin, strings and a bass line that lifts the song once it enters.
- English Vinglish, male version (English Vinglish, 2012): sung by Amit Trivedi, 4:32. The same tune taken in a lower register, looser and a little more playful than Shilpa Rao's take. Our original reviewer ended up preferring this one.
English Vinglish (Male) | Amit Trivedi - Dhak Dhuk (English Vinglish, 2012): sung by Amit Trivedi, 5:03. A quiet, keyboard-led song about a racing heart, sung by a male voice for a woman's feelings.
- Manhattan (English Vinglish, 2012): sung by Clinton Cerejo and Bianca Gomes, 4:36. The city song, light and breezy, written to sit under pictures rather than to stand alone.
- Gustakh Dil (English Vinglish, 2012): sung by Shilpa Rao, 5:39. The most intense track on the album, built on a double bass line, electric guitar and electronic beats, about a heart that refuses to take orders.
- Navrai Majhi (English Vinglish, 2012): sung by Sunidhi Chauhan, Swanand Kirkire, Natalie Di Luccio and Neelambari Kirkire, 4:23. A Marathi wedding song with dhol and a folk-style tune, and the album's one outright celebration.
What Each Song Does in the Film
English Vinglish was written and directed by Gauri Shinde, her first feature. Sridevi plays Shashi, a homemaker whose husband and teenage daughter make fun of her English. When her niece Meera's wedding takes her to New York five weeks early, she secretly enrols in a four-week conversational English course and ends up giving a toast at the reception. The songs follow that arc closely, which is why the album feels small and personal rather than built for the charts.
Dhak Dhuk belongs to the moment before the journey. Contemporary reviews singled it out for capturing Shashi's nerves before she leaves alone for a foreign country, and Trivedi keeps it so restrained that the anxiety comes through in the pauses as much as the words.
Manhattan and the title song carry Shashi into the city and into the class. The title song, in particular, turns the thing she is mocked for into a game: words and their rhyming echoes, sung with a smile, which is the film's whole argument that a new language can be fun rather than humiliating.
Gustakh Dil is the inward song, about feelings that do not follow instructions. It suits the private side of Shashi's weeks in New York, the parts of the story she cannot share with her family.
Navrai Majhi is the family celebration. It is the one song on the album that is openly festive, choreographed by Rujuta Vaidya, and it gives the wedding week a Marathi colour that reflects Shashi's own background.
Navrai Majhi: Why It Became a Wedding Favourite
"Navrai" is Marathi for bride and "majhi" means my, so the title is close to "my bride". The song celebrates the bride from her family's side, and its tune draws on Marathi folk wedding songs rather than on a Bollywood dance-floor template. That is a large part of why it lasts: it sounds like something an aunt might start singing at home, yet it has a full studio arrangement with dhol, a chorus and Sunidhi Chauhan in a lower, warmer register than her usual belting.
It works best at the smaller, family-led events of a wedding. At a mehendi or a haldi it gives the older relatives something to sing along to and the younger ones an easy, repetitive dance. It is one of the picks in our guide to the best mehendi songs, and for Maharashtrian families it does a job few Hindi film songs can, bringing Marathi into a mixed-language playlist without stopping the party.
What Does "Nana Chi Tang" Mean?
"Nana Chi Taang" is a song from the Akshay Kumar comedy Khatta Meetha (2010), composed by Pritam and sung by Kunal Ganjawala, with a rap section by U.R.L. It is not from English Vinglish. Our 2012 review brings it up because, like Navrai Majhi, it drops Marathi into a Hindi film song.
Word by word, "Nana chi" is Marathi for "Nana's" (Nana being a common Marathi name and form of address for an older man) and "taang" means leg. So the literal meaning is "Nana's leg". In the song it is used as a cheeky, throwaway catchphrase rather than as a literal statement, much the way the hook of a comedy number usually works.
Nana Chi Taang | Khatta Meetha | Pritam | Kunal GanjawalaWhere English Vinglish Sits in Amit Trivedi's 2012
2012 was Amit Trivedi's busiest year so far. He scored Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu in February and Ishaqzaade in May, then had three films open within a month of each other: English Vinglish on 5 October, Aiyyaa on 12 October and Luv Shuv Tey Chicken Khurana on 2 November. Aiyyaa is the natural companion piece here, because its heroine is also a Marathi woman and its best-known song, Aga Bai, sung by Shalmali Kholgade with lyrics by Amitabh Bhattacharya, has a similar Marathi flavour played for broader comedy.
Aga Bai | Aiyyaa | Amit Trivedi | Shalmali KholgadeEnglish Vinglish is the quietest of the three. Luv Shuv Tey Chicken Khurana went the other way, into loud Punjabi folk and a Yo Yo Honey Singh rap; our Luv Shuv Tey Chicken Khurana songs guide covers that album track by track. Played one after the other, they show how far Trivedi could stretch his sound in a single season.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who composed the music of English Vinglish?
Amit Trivedi composed all the songs and the background score. Swanand Kirkire wrote the Hindi lyrics.
Who sang Navrai Majhi in English Vinglish?
Sunidhi Chauhan leads the song, with Swanand Kirkire, Natalie Di Luccio and Neelambari Kirkire. Amit Trivedi composed it and Swanand Kirkire wrote the lyrics.
Is Nana Chi Taang from English Vinglish?
No. Nana Chi Taang is from Khatta Meetha (2010), composed by Pritam and sung by Kunal Ganjawala. It is mentioned in our original review only as another Hindi film song with Marathi lines.
How many songs are there in English Vinglish?
Six on the Hindi album: the title song in female and male versions, Dhak Dhuk, Manhattan, Gustakh Dil and Navrai Majhi.
Who sang the English Vinglish title song?
Shilpa Rao sings the female version and Amit Trivedi sings the male version.
Our Original Review (2012)
Gaurav Aradhye wrote this review in September 2012. It is preserved below as originally published.
Music Director: THE Amit Trivedi ( _/\_ )
Sridevi is back! Trailers are looking great and I am really looking forward to this film. But before that, let’s take a look at the songs. After all, it’s Amit Trivedi boss! The genius. I call him future AR.
1. Badala Nazara – Female – (Shilpa Rao, Amit Trivedi )
What a combination! Whenever it’s Shilpa singing Amit’s composition, the song has to be great! (Remember Dhol yara dhol, Paayaliya from Dev D? 🙂 ) The song is fresh, pleasant and energetic. It describes how one can feel happiness in the new busy life, when you are happy about what you are doing. I loved the lyrics… the words are repeated in the song by replacing the first word by ‘v’ just like in the movie name, and they sound just too good together… coffee voffee sugar vugar paper vaper news vews 🙂
English Vinglish Title Song | SrideviAbsolutely brilliant track. Amit Trivedi has filled this track with guitar, strings, mandolin, violin and the peppy beats. It starts slowly with violin and guitar, with those rhyming words. And then comes the rendering of Shilpa’s beautiful soft voice with the beats taking pace. Just after initial 4 lines, bass comes into picture and pours life into the track. This is essentially important to understand how Amit Trivedi has kept the song in low pitch and made it cheerful with the help of bass. Master mind! The excitement reaches the peak when we listen to Amit singing…. Aflaatooon….. Hai junoon…. Morning noon……. Super.
2. Badala Nazara – Male – ( Amit Trivedi )
By looking at the title of song, I was curious to know whether Amit had chosen higher octave or the lower octave to sing the song. And at the same time, was not sure if it will sound good in lower octave. But it indeed did. Not only it sounded good, it sounded awesome and that too with the extra “HHAAA” at the end of each line. Made it more alive. And I must admit, I am addicted to male version of this song more than female version!
3. Navrai Mazhi – (Sunidhi Chauhan, Swanand Kirkire)
When the lyricist is Swanand, you must expect at least one song in the album with Marathi lines. But he does it perfectly! (Remember Nana chi Tang from Khatta Meetha?). More of a fun song this is. I liked it. It has more of a tune of typical Marathi traditional song. Sunidhi sounds beautiful. I prefer to listen to Sunidhi in lower pitch than her typical high pitch songs. Swanand has sung well too. Instrumentation consists of Dhol too! Listening to this with the video makes it more fun.
Navrai Majhi | Full Video Song | English Vinglish | Sridevi Best Song4. Dhak Dhuk – (Amit Trivedi)
Expressing Female emotions through Male voice. I don’t know how it works, but surely, it makes more impact than female voice, especially when the song is little bit on the sadder side! (Remember O Saiyyan from Agneepath? 🙂 ). The lyrical part plays a major role in these types of songs and Amit Trivedi has given full justice to this fact by the way he has pronounced each and every word in the song, and by making us feel it’s very meaning. The song expresses the restlessness (Dhak dhuk) in the female mind, when she is leaving her family and going abroad. Instrumentation is just perfect… not less..not more. This is a silent song taking us into a different world if you listen to the keyboard patterns in the background (Reminds me of Sunari Sakhi from Humse hai Muqabla, beautiful keyboard!). Dreamy. I am not sure if Amit has really used Santoor here.
Dhak Dhuk (Video Song) | English Vinglish | Sridevi Best Song5. Gustakh Dil – (Shilpa Rao)
Helplessness and anger together. She knows her heart makes wrong decisions, doesn’t get along with the brain very well. And hence she is angry at it. But at the same time, she is helpless as she doesn’t have any control over it. Great job by Shilpa as she successfully expresses both the above emotions and most importantly, switches between them without us knowing about it. And I really appreciate the way Amit Trivedi has made use of the instruments. The song starts with bass notes of ContraBass violin (also known as double bass). This instrument plays throughout the song in the background, and adds the intensity to the song. Loved the electric guitar and electronic beats. Amit has been excelling in the use of bass. Fabulous!
Gustakh Dil (Video Song) | English Vinglish | Sridevi | Sridevi Best Song6. Manhattan – (Clinton Cerejo)
Some songs are made for background purpose. This song belongs to this category. I am sure this will go along with the video in the movie very well. But nothing to be getting addicted to.
Manhattan - Full Song With Lyrics - English Vinglish | Sridevi Best Song
