Salil Choudhury was popular for his indigenous style of music. He combined the strains of Western classical with Indian folk and classical music to give Hindi cinema some of its most popular melodies. Amazingly though Salil Choudhury did not receive formal training in music. Instead he grew up listening to Bach, Mozart, and Chopin, as well as eastern Indian folk music. As a young man, he was drawn by the communist ideology and he joined the leftist Indian Peoples` Theatre Association (IPTA). It was here that he began composing music for plays.

Salil Choudhury made his foray into Indian film music with Satyen Bose`s Bengali feature Paribartan. He co-wrote the lyrics for Bose`s next film too. His first Hindi assignment came with Bimal Roy`s Do Bigha Zameen, for which he also wrote the story. His extensive use of chorus in the song `Hariyala Sawan Dhol Bajaata Aaya` and `Bhai Re, Ganga Aur Jamuna Ki Dharti` were reminiscent of his earlier work for IPTA.

Salil Choudhury`s music for subsequent film such as Biraj Bahu, Naukri, and Jagte Raho went became extremely popular. His biggest success, however, once again came with Bimal Roy`s Madhumati. The film`s songs, from the romantic `Dil Tadap Tadap Ke` to the cheerful `Jungle Mein Mor Naacha` to the haunting `Aaja Re Pardesi`, prove the composer`s versatility. The film`s music, regarded as one of Hindi cinema`s classics, won Salil Choudhury the Filmfare Award for Best Music Director in 1958.

One of the characteristic features of Salil Choudhury`s music was his adaptation of the Western classical music. For instance, the Talat Mahmood hit `Itna Na Mujhse Tu Pyar Kar` (Chhaya) is said to be based on a well-known Mozart composition. Later, in the 1970s, he adapted the jazz structure to come up with such touching numbers as `Zindagi Kaisi Hain Paheli` (Anand) and Na Jaane Kyon (Chhoti Si Baat).

Due to Salil Choudhury`s expertise in orchestration and mood music, directors often called upon him to compose the background score for films without songs, such as Ittefaq. Choudhury is also the only major Hindi film composer to have worked in several languages, including Assamese, Tamil, Telugu, and most importantly, Malayalam, with Chemmeen being a remarkable success. He also directed Pinjre Ka Panchi in 1966.

The films for which Salil Choudhury composed music are as follows:

Do Bigha Zameen, 1953	Madhumati, 1958	Jhoola, 1962	Mere Bhaiya, 1972	Room No 203, 1980
Biraj Bahu, 1954	Sunehri Raatein, 1960	Prem Patra, 1962	Subse Bada Sukh , 1972	Nani Maa, 1980
Naukri, 1954	Jawahar, 1960	Chand Aur Suraj, 1965	Rajanigandha, 1974	Plot No 5, 1981
Amanat, 1955	Kanoon, 1960	Netaji Subhashchandra Bose, 1966	Chhoti Si Baat, 1975	Agni Pareeksha, 1981
Tangewali, 1955	Parakh, 1960	Jawab Ayega, 1968	Saagar, 1975	Dil Ka Saathi Dil, 1982
Awaaz, 1956	Usne Kaha Tha, 1960	Ittefaq, 1969	Jeevan Jyoti, 1976	Kanoon Kya Karega, 1984
Pariwar, 1956	Char Deeware, 1961	Sara Akash, 1969	Mrigaya, 1976	Trishagni, 1988
Jagte Raho, 1956	Chhaya, 1961	Anand, 1970	VOTl, 1976	Swarna Trishna, 1989
Aparadhi Kaun, 1957	Kabuliwala, 1961	Gehra Raaz, 1971	Minoo, 1976	Kamala Ki Maut, 1989
Ek Gaon Ki Kahani, 1957	Maya, 1961	Mere Apne, 1971	Naukri, 1978	Triyatri, 1990
Lai Batti, 1957	Memdidi, 1961	Annadata, 1972	Kala Patthar, 1979	Netraheen Sakshi, 1991
Musafir, 1957	Sapan Suhana, 1961	Anokha Daan, 1972	Jeena Yahan, 1979
Zamana, 1957	Half Ticket, 1962	Anokha Milan, 1972	Chehre Pe Chehra, 1980