Tip-Tip Barsa Point: Akshay Kumar, where were you in 'Tip Tip Barsa Paani'? It was Raveena all the way!

Twenty-five years ago, local markets were flooded with yellow chiffon sarees. Two particular songs were house-party staples. In a round of dumb charades, players would often fall back on mimicking the dance moves — the very dance moves that popularised the said yellow chiffon saree — and everyone would instantly guess the movie name. There’d be some amount of blushing and some amount of chuckles just by picturing that song, but it was mostly overpowered by a sense of sheer awe.

Twenty-five years ago, an entire generation grew up with and because of Tip Tip Barsa Paani — a song from the 1994 hit Mohra, and it was entirely thanks to Raveena Tandon Thadani.

Not Akshay Kumar.

Twenty-five years later, when the iconic rain dance song — something that’s become synonymous with sheer sensuality — gets a remake in the Rohit Shetty directorial venture Sooryavanshi, to be recreated by Akshay and Katrina Kaif, as a part of that generation, I skip a heartbeat. 

I trust Katrina — she’s a good dancer and she has the oomph to pull this song off. And then, remakes are not really new to Bollywood — after all, another iconic song from Mohra, Tu Cheez Badi Hai Mast was also remade recently for Machine.

But what bothers me is Akshay claiming Tip Tip Barsa Paani to his credit, which, let’s face it, is just blasphemous!

I would’ve definitely been disappointed if any other actor would’ve recreated Tip Tip Barsa Paani,a song which has been synonymous with me & my career & I can’t thank Ratan Jain ji enough. At times like these you realize,we may have come a long way but we also go back a long way pic.twitter.com/UtH5iDS0i9

— Akshay Kumar (@akshaykumar) June 20, 2019

In a tweet, along with a throwback picture of himself with Mohra producer Ratan Jain, Akshay said, “I would’ve definitely been disappointed if any other actor would’ve recreated Tip Tip Barsa Paani, a song which has been synonymous with me & my career & I can’t thank Ratan Jain ji enough.”

Yes, it is a song that’s been synonymous with him and his career — this song and this film helped Akshay shoot to popularity. He became a sensation overnight, becoming perhaps the first action star who could dance and romance — a deadly combination.

Which is why it is all the more important for him to remember to thank Raveena, his co-star, without whom there is no song.

Akshay is just the tip of the Tip Tip iceberg!

Can you imagine what the song would look like without Raveena?

Akshay Kumar would walk into an under-construction building, umbrella in tow, and that’s it. End of song.

Raveena brings raw sexiness to the song — something considered amazingly forward back then. She’s not just the object of desire here — she’s actually the one in control. She, in a rare Bollywood moment, shows how women are capable of feeling the same sensual desires that are usually only attributed to men. And when they do, they’re equally capable of expressing themselves and initiating conversation.

Raveena showed us it is perfectly okay to make the first move — it isn’t just the man’s job!

Yet, in a typical masculine turn of things, Akshay Kumar ended up taking all the credit, completely sidelining Raveena’s existence in the song.

Fortunately, the original song is available on YouTube for those of us who’re still in team Raveena.

And I’m playing it now.

Also read: Kabir Singh Movie Review: Shahid Kapoor romanticises toxic masculinity, and it's not good