Poet and lyricist Javed Akhtar is a man of quick words, as rediff readers found out when he chatted with them on Wednesday.
The writer discussed everything from Islam to Fame Gurukul, and is looking forward to the latest film he has written, Karan Johar's Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna. For those who missed it, this is how the chat went:
Javed Akhtar : Hello, this is Javed Akhtar here. Let's talk.
baashaa : Hello Javed saheb!how r u? how do u feel as a judge in famegurukul...do u feel qazi and ruprekha r the best singers? javedFan : I think u are a very hard follower of islam
manju : Sir,which is your favourite Ghazal album aditya : SIR,WHICH SONG OF ANY OTHER WRITER YOU LIKE THE MOST AND WHY ravi : Javed bhai, don't you think your art is being compromised in today's age of crass commercialisation ? Parag : Javedsaab do you think "Main Aaj bhi Feke Hue Paise Nahi Uthata" dialogue would have suited todays era .. since people are trying to Grab money Under the table .. Above the table .. doesn't matter whether the money thrown or not... nowadays right ?? kish_bhandage : is it possible to make another sholey in coming years? Akash : Javed Ji - Any plans of coming to Singapore vaibhav : how much do you love poetry of Kaifi Azmi, and compare him and his contemporaries with the present generation ? abhishek : Hello Javed Sir!! What is your inspiration for writing!!! ashish : Javed saab what r u upcoming new songs & r they romantic or else what? ssg : Javed ji why u often got entangled with Ila Arun in Fame Gurukul.We the viewers liked it , but we all think is cooked up.Do u think so ??? chandu : Sir, Mr. Gulzar said that "the song which is play in auto will be the most popular song" What you think? jagdev : Javed sir, do you have plans to enter in film production in future? mini : javed sab, the song fron duplicate"kathai aankhonwali ek.." is a very lovely song. Can i know the inspiration behind it?? Sudha : Sir,you are great, fantastic , superb, genius VICKY : JAAVED SAAB, THIS IS NOT FAIR, U HAVE NOT REPLIED TO ANY OF MY QUESTIONS. AT LEAST SIR, EK KA TO JAWAAB DO PLEASE. paharia : there is lots of pseudo writing is happening as far as creative writing is concerned, your comments??? chetna : Javed sir, I have been a great admirer of yur songs. Songs like Radha kaise na jale and sandeshe aate hain are my absolute favourites. I just want to ask you, is it a conscious decision to write dialogues and scripts only for family- honeyji, farhan etc...? kotak : javed sahab after tarkash what next? sankalp : Javedji farhan is one of my favourite film makers and lakshya though people say was over exaggerated was the most inspiring film ever made which highlighted career paranoia which all teenagers go through at one point.dont u think we need more of such meaningful cinema? gautam : sir can I know your views on teh future of hindi film lyric writing? After you, there have been no other significant lyric writers who have made an impact Sarkar : Javed Saab, which film are u looking fwd to most eagerly-- KANK, Don or Akbar-Jodha? Javed Akhtar : Thank you very much. It was a pleasure talking to all of you. There is a time bar and I could not answer all questions. But there is always a next time. Till then, good luck and goodbye.
Javed Akhtar : I won't say that about Ruprekha who was definitely as good as any other if not better but there were better singers than Qazi.At the same time let me add what we tend to forget that fame gurukul was not a competition of just singing. There was a catwalk, the faculty had a choreographer who used to train them to perform the songs. It means that we had to judge not only singing but also the performances and presentations too. At that count undoubtedly, Qazi was the best. In spite of that, the judges put him in the danger zone 12 times in 14 rounds. But he had become a heartthrob with the viewers because of his performance, personality and presence. In all ways, we have to accept that both these singers have reached victory the most democratic way.
Javed Akhtar : I think you have a great sense of humour because one needs a lot of humour to accuse an atheist of being a hard follower of any religion.
Raghu : Javed saab, Self comparision is always a tough job..... what do u think when u compare yourself with Gulzar saab?
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Javed Akhtar : Well, let me put it this way. We are rather different from each other. There is no need for any comparison because you can't compare chalk and cheese.
Javed Akhtar : I believe ghazals are basically for reading. Good poetry can be appreciated and understood if you read it again and again. I am not particularly fond of ghazal albums because in pursuit of what is called lowest common denominator, the present ghazal singers more often than not tend to sing rather substandard text.
Javed Akhtar : I am a great admirer of Sahir. I think why only one, he has written dozens of exceptionally good songs.
Javed Akhtar : No I don't think so. I am a professional writer but at any cost I have never written a word that my conscience would consider unaesthetic or below my dignity. I own whatever I have written.
Javed Akhtar : Your question is extremely interesting and incisive. There is no room for such a dialogue in our films today because the hero of today's cinema are never poor. Gone are the days when heroes used to come from working class and poor segment of society.
Javed Akhtar : Why another Sholay? I expect that the younger generation will make even better films than what we did.
Javed Akhtar : Send me an invitation.
Javed Akhtar : Kaifi saab is undoubtedly a very important poet of the Progressive Writers' Movement. His contemporaries were poets like Faiz, Sardar Jaffri, Jannisar Akhtar, Sahir, Majrooh. I don't see any need to compare them with the present generation. The present generation is different from them as they were different from their seniors like Jigar, Husrat or Faani.
Javed Akhtar : If you are sensitive, receptive, if you look around, if you really hear, observe, there is no dearth of inspiration.
Javed Akhtar : Yes most of them are romantic. Wait for albums of Kabhie Alvida Na Kehna and Umrao Jaan. I think they will be released in the next few months.
Javed Akhtar : It was not cooked up but at the same time it was as serious and bitter as some people thought it to be. Ila was a good friend and remains so.
Javed Akhtar : May be but it better not be played in auto rickshaws. Sometimes, such songs have very short lives. A good song is like good wine. It takes a little time but then its intoxication stays with you.
Javed Akhtar : Yes it is one of my fantasies. Let's see if it ever happens.
Javed Akhtar : Yes you can. The source of inspiration was a pair of dark, brown eyes, sparkling and full of love.
Javed Akhtar : Thank you very much. But Sudha, it's not a question. It's an overgenerous, highly exaggerated and definitely undeserving compliment.
Javed Akhtar : Sorry my friend, your questions never reached. Your complaint I am replying to.
Javed Akhtar : I agree. Lot of absurdity hides itself under the title of abstraction. Some poets use strange words and familiar metaphors, incomprehensible similies and expect the listeners and readers to create their own meanings. Nowadays, there is something like prose petry which is nothing but a con job.
Javed Akhtar : This allegation of practising nepotism is quite interesting. I never thought of it.I promise you my next script will be for someone not even remotely related to me.
Javed Akhtar : Hopefully, my second collection of poems and ghazals will get into print within this calender year.
Javed Akhtar : Thank you for appreciating Lakshya. I am surprised if anybody has found it exaqggerated because I genuinely believe that it was an extremely understated narrative.
Javed Akhtar : I think from 84 to 94 was the worst period of Hindi film songs. Things are improving although there is lot to be desired and average film songs are yet to regain the standard that one finds in the songs of 50s and 60s. But by and large, I think we are moving in the right direction. There is a trend of using lot of English words or the Bombay colloquial but I am sure this shall pass.
Javed Akhtar : Well at the time, KANK. For while Don and Jodha-Akbar are yet to go on the floor, KANK is nearing completion. Once this film is released, I will look forward to those films with equal enthusiasm.
