Javed Akhtar on troubled relationship with his father, not getting along with step-mother: ‘He was a good poet, but…’

Javed Akhtar had a troubled relationship with his father Jan Nisar Akhtar, who was also a poet and a lyricist. He also was not on cordial terms with his stepmother.

By: Entertainment Desk

New Delhi | January 21, 2023 01:13 PM IST

3 min read

Javed Akhtar lost his mother at a young age. (Express Archive Photo)

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Bollywood lyricist and screenwriter Javed Akhtar was born to poet Jan Nisar Akhtar and Safiya Siraj-ul Haq. But his mother passed away when he was quite young, and he didn’t share a cordial relationship with his stepmother, because of which he never lived with his father either. In a recent interview with the BBC, Javed Akhtar talked about his troubled relationship with his late father.

He said though his father was a great poet, he failed as a parent. He said, “Sometimes, children have complaints about their fathers. But a man cannot be everything. He was a poet and generally a person of his stature gets irresponsible in other aspects of life. So, he probably was like that. He was a good poet but he failed in the other roles.”

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The veteran lyricist spent only 2-3 years of his childhood with his parents and siblings. After his mother’s death, he was brought up by his maternal grandparents. Javed also shared that after his mother’s death, his father remarried. “A few years after my mother’s death, Akhtar saab (referring to his father) married again, rightfully so because he was a young man and it is difficult to live life alone,” he shared.

However, Javed didn’t have a good relationship with his stepmother. “I didn’t have good equation with my stepmother, so we couldn’t live together. When I moved to Mumbai, even then I didn’t stay with my father. I used to go and meet him at his house just like other visitors,” the lyricist shared.

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Javed Akhtar, along with his former writing partner Salim Khan, created popular villains such as Gabbar from Sholay and Mogambo of Mr India. Recently, he released a new book, titled Talking Life. The lyricist, who is married to actor Shabana Azmi, is the father of filmmakers Farhan Akhtar and Zoya Akhtar.

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