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Javed Akhtar (born 17 January 1945) is an Indian
poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or w ...
,
lyricist A lyricist is a songwriter who writes lyrics (the spoken words), as opposed to a composer, who writes the song's music which may include but not limited to the melody, harmony, arrangement and accompaniment. Royalties A lyricist's incom ...
, screenwriter and political activist. Known for his work in Hindi cinema, he has won five National Film Awards, and received the
Padma Shri Padma Shri ( IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is conf ...
in 1999 and the Padma Bhushan in 2007, two of India's highest civilian honours. Akhtar came to recognition in the duo
Salim–Javed Salim–Javed were an Indian screenwriting duo, composed of Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar, working in Bollywood. They are noted for being the first Indian screenwriters to achieve star status, becoming the most successful Indian screenwriters ...
, and earned his breakthrough as a screenwriter with 1973's ''Zanjeer''. He went on to write the films ''Deewar'' and '' Sholay'', both released in 1975; they earned a cult following, and had a significant impact in
popular culture Popular culture (also called mass culture or pop culture) is generally recognized by members of a society as a set of practices, beliefs, artistic output (also known as, popular art or mass art) and objects that are dominant or prevalent in a ...
. He later earned praise for his work as a
lyricist A lyricist is a songwriter who writes lyrics (the spoken words), as opposed to a composer, who writes the song's music which may include but not limited to the melody, harmony, arrangement and accompaniment. Royalties A lyricist's incom ...
, winning the National Film Award for Best Lyrics five times and the Filmfare Award for Best Lyricist eight times. Akhtar notably campaigned for the Communist Party of India (CPI) and their candidate in the
2019 Indian general election General elections were held in India in seven phases from 11 April to 19 May 2019 to elect the members of the 17th Lok Sabha. Votes were counted and the result was declared on 23 May. Around 912 million people were eligible to vote, and voter ...
, and was a member of parliament in Rajya Sabha. For his work, he received the Richard Dawkins Award in 2020.


Early life

Javed Akhtar was born in 1945 in
Gwalior Gwalior() is a major city in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh; it lies in northern part of Madhya Pradesh and is one of the Counter-magnet cities. Located south of Delhi, the capital city of India, from Agra and from Bhopal, the s ...
. His father Jan Nisar Akhtar was a
Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" ...
film songwriter and
Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
'' Muztar Khairabadi Iftikhar Hussain (1865 – 1927), known by his pen name Muztar Khairabadi, was an Indian Urdu poet. Biography Khairabadi was born in 1865 in Khairabad.Mohammad Shamsul Haq, ''Paimana-e-Ghazal'', vol. 1, pg 241 He was the grandson of Fazl-e-Ha ...
was a poet as was his grandfather's elder brother, Bismil Khairabadi, while his great great grandfather, Fazl-e-Haq Khairabadi, was a religious scholar of Islam who supported the First Independence Movement of India in 1857 for religious reasons. Javed Akhtar's original name was Jadoo, taken from a line in a poem written by his father: "Lamha, lamha kisi jadoo ka fasana hoga". He was given the official name of Javed since it was the closest to the word ''jadoo''. He spent most of his childhood and was schooled in
Lucknow Lucknow (, ) is the capital and the largest city of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is also the second largest urban agglomeration in Uttar Pradesh. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district and divis ...
. He graduated from Saifiya College in
Bhopal Bhopal (; ) is the capital city of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh and the administrative headquarters of both Bhopal district and Bhopal division. It is known as the ''City of Lakes'' due to its various natural and artificial lakes. It i ...
.


Career as scriptwriter

Initially, in the 1970s, there was generally no concept of having the same writer for the screenplay, story and dialogue, nor were the writers given any credits in the titles. Rajesh Khanna is credited with giving Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar their first chance to become screenplay writers by offering them work in '' Haathi Mere Saathi''. Javed Akhtar stated in an interview that one day, he went to Salimsaab and said that Mr. Devar had given him a huge signing amount with which he could complete the payment for his bungalow, Aashirwad. But the film was a remake and the script of the original was far from being satisfactory. "He told us that if we could set right the script, he would make sure we got both money and credit." Their first big success was the script for ''Andaz'', followed by '' Adhikar'' (1971), '' Haathi Mere Saathi'' and '' Seeta Aur Geeta'' (1972). They also had hits with '' Yaadon Ki Baaraat'' (1973), '' Zanjeer'' (1973), '' Haath Ki Safai'' (1974), '' Deewaar'' (1975), '' Sholay'' (1975), '' Chacha Bhatija'' (1977), '' Don'' (1978), '' Trishul'' (1978), '' Dostana'' (1980), '' Kranti'' (1981), '' Zamana'' (1985) and '' Mr. India'' (1987). They have worked together in 24 films including two
Kannada Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47 million native s ...
films – '' Premada Kanike'' and ''
Raja Nanna Raja ''Raja Nanna Raja'' () is a 1976 Kannada-language romantic thriller film, written by Salim–Javed, and the screenplay was created by Chi. Udaya Shankar. The film was directed by A. V. Sheshagiri Rao, and produced by A. L. Abbaiah Naidu. The ...
''. Of the 24 films they wrote, 20 were hits. The scripts they wrote, but which were not successful at box office include ''
Aakhri Dao ''Aakhri Daao'' () is a 1975 Indian Hindi-language crime film, directed by A. Salaam, written by Salim–Javed, and produced by M.M. Malhotra Kala Bharathi. It stars Jeetendra, Saira Banu in lead roles, with Danny Denzongpa, Padma Khanna, R ...
'' (1975), '' Immaan Dharam'' (1977), '' Kaala Patthar'' (1979) and '' Shaan'' (1980). Though they split in 1982, due to ego issues, some of the scripts they wrote were made into hit films later, such as '' Zamana'' and '' Mr. India''. Salim-Javed, many a time described as "the most successful scriptwriters of all-time", are also noted to be the first scriptwriters in Indian cinema to achieve star status.


Personal life

Akhtar was nominated to the Parliament upper house Rajya Sabha on 16 November 2009. Akhtar was married to Honey Irani, with whom he had two children, Farhan Akhtar, a film actor, producer, director and Zoya Akhtar, a film writer, director and producer. The father-and-son duo have worked together in films such as '' Dil Chahta Hai'', '' Lakshya'', '' Rock On!!'' and ''
Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara ''Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara'' (), also abbreviated as ''ZNMD'', is a 2011 Indian Hindi-language buddy road comedy drama film directed by Zoya Akhtar and produced by Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani under Excel Entertainment. The film featu ...
'' with Zoya. Farhan was married to Adhuna Akhtar, a hair stylist. Akhtar is an atheist, and brought up his children Farhan and Zoya Akhtar as atheists. Akhtar married Shabana Azmi, the daughter of Urdu poet,
Kaifi Azmi Kaifi Azmi (born Athar Husain Rizvi; 14 January 1919 – 10 May 2002) was an Indian Urdu poet. He is remembered as the one who brought Urdu literature to Indian motion pictures. Together with Pirzada Qasim, Jaun Elia and others he participat ...
and later divorced Irani. Akhtar's uncle, Asrar-ul-Haq "
Majaz Asrar-ul-Haq (19 October 1911 – 5 December 1955), better known as Majaz Lakhnawi, was an Indian Urdu poet. He is known for his romantic and revolutionary poetry. He composed ''ghazals'' and ''nazms'' in Urdu. He was the maternal uncle of po ...
" was also an Urdu poet. His uncle,
Ansar Harvani Ansar Harvani is an Indian politician. Harwani opposed the partition of India. He was elected to the Lok Sabha, lower house of the Parliament of India from Fatehpur, Uttar Pradesh as a member of the Indian National Congress The India ...
, was a member of the Indian independence movement and an elected Member of Parliament. Akhtar's aunt,
Hamida Salim Hamida Salim (1922-2015) was an Indian author, economist, and educator, writing primarily in the Urdu language. She was the first woman to graduate from Aligarh Muslim University. Personal life Salim was born in 1922 in Rudauli, in Uttar Prad ...
, was an Indian author, economist and educator as well.


Awards and nominations

Javed was awarded the civilian honour of
Padma Shri Padma Shri ( IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is conf ...
by the Government of India in 1999, followed by the Padma Bhushan in 2007. In 2013, he received the
Sahitya Akademi Award The Sahitya Akademi Award is a literary honour in India, which the Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, annually confers on writers of the most outstanding books of literary merit published in any of the 22 languages of the ...
in
Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
'' honorary doctorate An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hono ...
( Doctor of Letters) by the
Jamia Hamdard University Jamia (جامعة ''jāmi‘a''; also ''jamiya'' 'h'' is the Arabic word for ''gathering''. It can also refer to a book Al-Jami'a or a mosque, or more generally, a university. In the latter sense it refers in official usage to a modern university, ...
. In 2020 he was awarded the Richard Dawkins Award for being a "powerful force for secularism, reason, and human rights, challenging superstition and intolerance through his work in poetry, screenwriting, and political activism"..


Filmography


As screenwriter

: Teamed as Salim-Javed : As Javed Akhtar


As lyricist

* '' Silsila'' (1981) * '' Duniya'' (1984) * '' Saagar'' * '' 1942: A Love Story'' * '' Dil Chahta Hai'' * '' Saath-Saath'' * ''
Narsimha Narasimha ( sa, नरसिंह, lit=man-lion, ), sometimes rendered Narasingha, is the fourth avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu. He is regarded to have incarnated in the form of a part-lion, part-man being to slay Hiranyakashipu, to end rel ...
'' (1991) * ''
Mashaal ''Mashaal'' () is a 1984 Bollywood action film. Produced and directed by Yash Chopra, it starred Dilip Kumar, Waheeda Rehman, Anil Kapoor and Rati Agnihotri. The role played by Anil Kapoor was first offered to Amitabh Bachchan and then to Kamal ...
'' * '' Sailaab'' * '' Mr. India'' * ''
Tezaab ''Tezaab'' () is a 1988 Indian Hindi-language action romance film starring Anil Kapoor and Madhuri Dixit in lead roles. The film gave Dixit her first big break, making her an overnight star. in addition to reaffirming Kapoor's star status, af ...
'' * '' Hafta Bandh'' * '' Jaadugar'' * ''
Joshilaay ''Joshilaay'' is a 1989 Indian Hindi-language film directed by Sibte Hassan Rizvi. The film stars Sunny Deol, Anil Kapoor, Sridevi, Meenakshi Sheshadri, Kulbhushan Kharbanda and Rajesh Vivek. The music was composed by R. D. Burman. Plot The ...
'' * '' Arjun'' * '' Roop Ki Rani Choron Ka Raja'' * ''
Yugandhar ''Yugandhar'' is a 1979 Indian Telugu-language action film, produced by P. Vidya Sagar on Sri Gajalakshmi Arts banner and directed by K. S. R. Das. The film stars N. T. Rama Rao, Jayasudha, and music composed by Ilaiyaraaja. It is a remake o ...
'' * '' Jamai Raja'' * '' Khel'' * '' Gardish'' * '' Papa Kehte Hai'' * ''
Border Borders are usually defined as geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other subnational entities. Political borders ca ...
'' * '' Sapnay'' (Dubbed version) * '' Virasat'' * ''
Mrityudand ''Mrityudand'' (English: ''Death Sentence'') is an Indian Hindi drama film released in 1997. It was directed and produced by Prakash Jha and stars Madhuri Dixit, Shabana Azmi, Ayub Khan, Mohan Agashe and Om Puri. The film is a commentary on the ...
'' * '' Dastak'' * '' Sardari Begum'' * '' Saaz'' * '' Mil Gayee Manzil Mujhe'' * '' Diljale'' * '' Yes Boss'' * '' Darmiyaan: In Between'' * ''
Aur Pyaar Ho Gaya ''Aur Pyar Ho Gaya'' (English: And Love Happened) is a 1997 Indian Hindi romance film directed by Rahul Rawail and starring Bobby Deol and Aishwarya Rai. This film marked the Hindi debut for Aishwarya Rai. The film's music was composed by th ...
'' * '' Wajood'' * ''
Kabhi Na Kabhi ''Kabhi Na Kabhi'' () is a 1998 Indian Hindi-language action film co-written and directed by Priyadarshan. It stars Anil Kapoor, Jackie Shroff and Pooja Bhatt. The film was produced by R. Mohan (aka GoodKnight Mohan) in the banner of a Malayalam ...
'' * '' Drohi'' * '' Jeans'' (Dubbed version) * ''
Bada Din ''Bada Din'' () is a 1998 Indian Hindi-language romantic drama film directed by Anjan Dutt. It stars Marc Robinson, Tara Deshpande, Shabana Azmi and Irrfan Khan. It is about a couple who face tribulations while helping a mute boy on Christm ...
'' * '' Duplicate'' * '' Laawaris'' * '' Godmother'' * '' Baadshah'' * '' Arjun Pandit'' * ''
1947 Earth ''Earth'' ( hi, पृथ्वी; released in India as ''1947: Earth'') is a 1999 Indo-Canadian period romance drama film directed by Deepa Mehta. It is based upon Bapsi Sidhwa's novel, '' Cracking India'' (1991, US; 1992, India; originally p ...
'' * '' Dillagi'' * '' Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani'' * '' Refugee'' * '' Karobaar'' * ''
Hamara Dil Aapke Paas Hai ''Hamara Dil Aapke Paas Hai'' (''My Heart is with You'') is a 2000 Indian Hindi-language romantic action drama film directed by Satish Kaushik, produced by Boney Kapoor, released on 24 August 2000. The film stars Anil Kapoor, Aishwarya Rai and ...
'' * '' Raja Ko Rani Se Pyar Ho Gaya'' * ''
Champion A champion (from the late Latin ''campio'') is the victor in a challenge, contest or competition. There can be a territorial pyramid of championships, e.g. local, regional / provincial, state, national, continental and world championships, a ...
'' * '' Gang'' * '' Pyar Ki Dhun'' * '' Zubeidaa'' * '' Lagaan'' * '' Abhay'' * ''
Moksha ''Moksha'' (; sa, मोक्ष, '), also called ''vimoksha'', ''vimukti'' and ''mukti'', is a term in Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism for various forms of emancipation, enlightenment, liberation, and release. In its soteriologic ...
'' * ''
Agni Varsha ''Agni Varsha'' is a 2002 Indian Hindi-language epic film produced by Kashish Bhatnagar on I Dream Productions banner, directed by Arjun Sajnani. It stars Amitabh Bachchan, Jackie Shroff, Nagarjuna, Raveena Tandon, Milind Soman and Prabhu Dev ...
'' * ''
Mere Yaar Ki Shaadi Hai ''Mere Yaar Ki Shaadi Hai'' () is a 2002 Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy directed by Sanjay Gadhvi and produced by Yash Chopra and Aditya Chopra under the banner Yash Raj Films. The film starred Uday Chopra, Tulip Joshi (in her debut), J ...
'' * ''
Badhaai Ho Badhaai ''Badhaai Ho Badhaai'' () is a 2002 Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy film starring Anil Kapoor, Keerthi Reddy and Shilpa Shetty. The film is the Hindi remake of the 1996 Tamil movie ''Poove Unakkaga''. Plot The D'Souza and the Chaddha f ...
'' * ''
Yeh Kya Ho Raha Hai? ''Yeh Kya Ho Raha Hai'' (What Is Happening?) is a 2002 Bollywood adult comedy film. Directed by Hansal Mehta, produced by Pammi Baweja and written by Suparn Verma. the film stars Prashant Chianani, Aamir Ali Malik, Vaibhav Jalani, Yash Pandit ...
'' * '' Satta'' * ''
Love at Times Square ''Love at Times Square'' is a 2003 Bollywood film directed by and starring Dev Anand with Shoib Khan, Chaitanya Chaudhary and Heene Kaushik. The film had special appearances from Salman Khan and Rishi Kapoor. Plot Sweety is the daughter of a ...
'' * '' The Hero: Love Story of a Spy'' * '' Armaan'' * '' Chalte Chalte'' * '' Kuch Naa Kaho'' * ''
Kal Ho Naa Ho ''Kal Ho Naa Ho'' (, ), also abbreviated as ''KHNH'', is a 2003 Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy drama film directed by Nikhil Advani, written by Karan Johar with dialogue by Niranjan Iyengar, and produced by Yash Johar. The film stars ...
'' * '' L.O.C. Kargil'' * '' Tehzeeb'' * '' Main Hoon Na'' (2004) * ''
Veer-Zaara ''Veer-Zaara'' () is a 2004 Indian Hindi-language romantic drama film directed by Yash Chopra, who co-produced it with his son Aditya Chopra. It stars Shah Rukh Khan and Preity Zinta as the eponymous star-crossed lovers: Veer Pratap Singh (Kh ...
'' (2004) * '' Lakshya'' * ''
Charas Charas is a cannabis concentrate made from the resin of a live cannabis plant (''Cannabis sativa'' either '' ''Indica' subspecies or ''Sativa'' subspecies) and is handmade in the Indian subcontinent and Jamaica. The plant grows wild through ...
'' * '' Kyun! Ho Gaya Na...'' * ''Dobara'' * '' Swades'' * '' Kisna: The Warrior Poet'' * '' Bose: The Forgotten Hero'' * '' Mangal Pandey: The Rising'' * '' Dil Jo Bhi Kahey...'' * '' Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna'' * '' Don: The Chase Begins Again'' * '' Namastey London'' * '' Ta Ra Rum Pum'' * ''
Dhan Dhana Dhan Goal ''Dhan Dhana Dhan Goal'' ( en, Get Set Goal) is a 2007 Indian Hindi-language sports drama film produced by Ronnie Screwvala and directed by Vivek Agnihotri for UTV Motion Pictures. The film stars John Abraham, Bipasha Basu, Arshad Warsi and B ...
'' * ''
Welcome A welcome is a kind of greeting designed to introduce a person to a new place or situation, and to make them feel at ease. The term can similarly be used to describe the feeling of being accepted on the part of the new person. In some contexts ...
'' * ''
Om Shanti Om ''Om Shanti Om'' (transl. ''Peace Be With You'') is a 2007 Indian Hindi-language fantasy romance film written and directed by Farah Khan, co-written by Mayur Puri and Mushtaq Shiekh, and produced by Gauri Khan under the banner of Red Chillie ...
'' * ''
Jodhaa Akbar ''Jodhaa Akbar'' is a 2008 Indian Hindi-language epic historical romantic drama film directed by Ashutosh Gowariker. It stars Hrithik Roshan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in the titular roles. Set in the 16th century, the film shows the life and ...
'' * '' Rock On!!'' * '' Luck by Chance'' (2009) * ''
What's Your Raashee? ''What's Your Raashee?'' () is a 2009 Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy film written and directed by Ashutosh Gowariker. It was produced by Ronnie Screwvala and Sunita A. Gowariker. The film stars Harman Baweja and Priyanka Chopra, with Dar ...
'' (2009) * '' Wake Up Sid'' (2009) * ''
Karthik Calling Karthik ''Karthik Calling Karthik'' is a 2010 Indian psychological thriller film, written and directed by Vijay Lalwani and produced by Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani under the banner of Excel Entertainment. The film stars Farhan Akhtar and Deepika P ...
'' (2010) * ''
Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey ''Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey'' () is an Indian Hindi-language historical action-adventure film directed by Ashutosh Gowariker and released on 3 December 2010. Starring Abhishek Bachchan, Deepika Padukone and Sikandar Kher, it was based on Manin ...
'' (2010) * '' Aisha'' (2010) * '' Red Alert: The War Within'' (2010) * ''
Prem Kaa Game ''Prem Kaa Game'' () is a 2010 Bollywood romantic comedy film produced and directed by Ashok Kheny and starring Arbaaz Khan, Tara Sharma, Madhuri Bhattacharya, Rakesh Bedi, Johnny Lever and Sameer Kochhar. Salman Khan appears in the film as a n ...
'' (2010) * '' Don 2: The King is Back'' (2011) * '' Traffic Signal'' (2009) * '' Ekk Deewana Tha'' (2012) * '' Talaash'' (2012) * '' Vishwaroop'' (2013) * ''
Mohenjo Daro Mohenjo-daro (; sd, موئن جو دڙو'', ''meaning 'Mound of the Dead Men';Raees'' (2017) * '' Dil Dhadakne Do'' (2015) *''
Rock On 2 ''Rock On 2'' (also known as ''Rock On!! 2'') is a 2016 Indian Hindi-language musical drama film directed by Shujaat Saudagar, and produced by Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani. A sequel to the National film award winning film ''Rock On!!'' (20 ...
'' *'' Paltan'' (2018) *''
Namastey England ''Namaste England'' () is a 2018 Indian Hindi-language romantic drama film directed and co-produced by Vipul Amrutlal Shah. The film is the sequel to 2007 film '' Namastey London''. The film stars Arjun Kapoor and Parineeti Chopra in lead r ...
'' (2018) *'' Gully Boy'' (2019) *'' Panga''(2020)


Bibliography

* ''Tarkash'' (1995) * ''Lava'' (2012)


See also

* List of Urdu-language poets


References


Further reading

* * *


External links


Javed Akhtar Songs, Poetry, Biography

Javed Akhtar at Kavita Kosh
(Hindi) *
BBC's Noel Thompson interviews JavedAkhtar on 4 September 2006
{{DEFAULTSORT:Akhtar, Javed Indian male poets Former Muslims Recipients of the Padma Shri in arts Urdu-language poets from India Aligarh Muslim University alumni Recipients of the Padma Bhushan in literature & education Filmfare Awards winners Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award winners Indian atheists Indian lyricists People from Aligarh Writers from Bhopal People from Gwalior Writers from Lucknow Former Muslims turned agnostics or atheists 1945 births Living people Nominated members of the Rajya Sabha Poets from Uttar Pradesh 20th-century Indian poets 21st-century Indian poets Urdu-language writers * 20th-century Indian male writers 21st-century Indian male writers Screenwriters from Uttar Pradesh 20th-century Indian dramatists and playwrights 21st-century Indian dramatists and playwrights Best Lyrics National Film Award winners 20th-century atheists 21st-century atheists Recipients of the Sahitya Akademi Award in Urdu