While the monsoons may help romances for city folk, the rains hold special significance for the Indian farmer. Several songs address this role -- from Do Bigha Zameen's Hariyala sawan dhol machata aaya to Guide's Allah megh de to Lagaan's Ghanan ghanan.

But, for sheer joy, it's hard to beat Umad ghumad kar aayi re ghata. Just listen to the music of Bharat Vyas' lines like: "Jab sanan pavan ko laga teer, badal ko cheer nikala re neer. O dharti jal se maang bhare." In this V Shantaram epic, the coming of the rains is celebrated by a reformist man with a mission (Shantaram), a woman (Sandhya), two untidy kids and 12 convicts because it means they can reap a good crop of vegetables from the barren land they have been cultivating.