Best Indian Indie Songs of 2013: 20 Songs With Release Dates

The best Indian indie songs of 2013 sound like a scene finding its feet. Prateek Kuhad was releasing his first Hindi songs, Nucleya was inventing desi bass, Dualist Inquiry put out his debut and Parekh & Singh recorded the songs that would make them famous three years later. This list picks twenty songs from 2013 that you can stream on Apple Music India today.

How we checked. Every song date below is the song's own date on Apple Music India (iTunes catalogue, country IN), checked on 28 October 2026, not just the album date. A song is only here if Apple dates the song itself to 2013. Only released music is covered. For the full records, see our albums list for the year. For the next year, see our 2014 songs list.

Quick answer: the 10 best Indian indie songs of 2013

• Prateek Kuhad – "Raat Raazi" (18 August 2013)
• Parekh & Singh – "I Love You Baby, I Love You Doll" (dated 2013)
• Nucleya – "Bangla Bass" (feat. Mou Sultana & Brooklyn Shanti) (14 October 2013)
• Dualist Inquiry – "6am" (15 March 2013)
• Tajdar Junaid – "What Colour Is Your Raindrop" (17 August 2013)
• Swarathma – "Rang Zinda Hain" (21 July 2013)
• Skrat – "Smoke a Cigar" (5 February 2013)
• Parvaaz – "Khufiya Dastaan" (16 February 2013)
• Sky Rabbit – "Where" (10 July 2013)
• Aswekeepsearching – "The Tattva" (13 December 2013)

The 20 songs

1. Prateek Kuhad – "Raat Raazi" (18 August 2013). The title song of his first Hindi EP, and the gentle, intimate sound that made him a household name later. See Prateek Kuhad songs.

2. Prateek Kuhad – "Voh" (18 August 2013). Another Raat Raazi song, short and tender.

3. Parekh & Singh – "I Love You Baby, I Love You Doll" (2013). Apple dates the song to 2013 (a 1 January placeholder), though most listeners found it with the 2016 Ocean release and its video. Pure dream-pop. See Parekh & Singh songs.

4. Parekh & Singh – "Ghost" (2013). The duo's most melancholy song from the same sessions.

5. Nucleya – "Bangla Bass" (feat. Mou Sultana & Brooklyn Shanti) (14 October 2013). From Koocha Monster: Bengali folk vocals over heavy bass. See Nucleya songs.

6. Nucleya – "New Delhi Nuttah" (feat. Delhi Sultanate) (14 October 2013). Dancehall energy from the same EP.

7. Dualist Inquiry – "6am" (15 March 2013). The calm, glowing heart of Doppelganger. See Dualist Inquiry songs.

8. Dualist Inquiry – "Specter" (15 March 2013). The album's opener, guitar loops over clean beats.

9. Tajdar Junaid – "What Colour Is Your Raindrop" (17 August 2013). The title song of his debut: soft guitar, soft voice, big feeling.

10. Tajdar Junaid – "Mockingbird" (feat. Greg Johnson) (17 August 2013). A warm English-language duet from the same album.

11. Swarathma – "Rang Zinda Hain" (21 July 2013). A stand-alone song from the Bengaluru folk-rock band. (The single is labelled 2014 on Apple, but the song itself is dated 21 July 2013.) See Indian folk fusion bands.

12. Skrat – "Smoke a Cigar" (5 February 2013). The opener of Bring Out The Guns: two and a half minutes of pure garage rock. See the Chennai indie music scene.

13. Skrat – "In the Rain" (feat. Shakthisree Gopalan) (5 February 2013). The album's slower closer, with a lovely guest vocal.

14. Parvaaz – "Khufiya Dastaan" (16 February 2013). A stand-alone single, between the Behosh EP and Baran. See Parvaaz albums.

15. Sky Rabbit – "Where" (10 July 2013). The title song of the Mumbai band's EP, all shimmering synths and guitars.

16. The Bicycle Days – "Crawl (The Human Experience)" (7 June 2013). The big rock moment from Calamitunes.

17. Workshop – "Down to Dahisar" (21 January 2013). A funny, funky Mumbai song from Made Love to the Dragon. See Mumbai indie bands.

18. Bandish Projekt – "Alchemy" (feat. Last Mango in Paris) (23 September 2013). Released ahead of the 2014 album Connekt.

19. Monica Dogra & Prashant Mistry – "Suspended" (feat. Eric Pare) (10 November 2013). A moody electronic single from the Shaa'ir + Func singer.

20. Aswekeepsearching – "The Tattva" (13 December 2013). The first song out from Growing Suspicions, a slow-burning post-rock piece. See Aswekeepsearching albums.

More 2013 songs worth a listen

• Them Clones – "Mediocre" and "Speak When I'm Gone" (both 22 September 2013), two stand-alone singles from the Delhi rock band.
• Nucleya – "Akkad Bakkad" (14 October 2013).
• Spud in the Box – "Lens Life" (3 January 2013), from Attention Please.
• Aditya Balani – "Bandish" (14 November 2013), from Answers.
• The Bicycle Days – "Vicious" (7 June 2013).

What is left out

• Film songs and Coke Studio performances, even by indie artists.
• Songs whose own date is not 2013. Parvaaz's Behosh EP is dated 2013 but its songs are dated 12 July 2012.

How to use this list

Play the top ten in order for a quick picture of 2013. For a quieter playlist, take "Raat Raazi", "Voh", "Ghost", "What Colour Is Your Raindrop" and "6am". For more songs across the years, see Indian indie songs and Indian indie love songs.

FAQ

What was the best Indian indie song of 2013? On this list, Prateek Kuhad's "Raat Raazi" (18 August 2013). Parekh & Singh's "I Love You Baby, I Love You Doll" is close behind.

Is "I Love You Baby, I Love You Doll" from 2013 or 2016? Apple Music India dates the song to 2013. It became widely known in 2016, when Ocean was released internationally and a separate single was dated 26 August 2016.

When did Nucleya release Koocha Monster? The EP and its six songs are dated 14 October 2013.