When Javed Akhtar said Sahir Ludhianvi was a ‘paradoxical man’, Gulzar revealed why he’s special: ‘Unke wajah se pehli baar geetkar ka naam…’

“He was a very paradoxical man, I can’t say a more boring thing about him if I say he was a good man. When he was good he could be good beyond limits and same goes for when he was angry with somebody. It was like a pendulum with him,” Akhtar had once said about the late lyricist during the Jashn-e-Rekhta festival. “Do you think a man who led a relaxed life, the one with money and comfort would name his book ‘talkhiyan’ (bitterness)? It is not possible. His life was full of bitterness and sadness and it remained with him till his last days.”

Javed Akhtar then went on to add that no one but him could pen the biopic of Sahir Ludhianvi’s life: “He was a friend of my father and my mamu’s (maternal uncle) friend. He used to meet with a lot of love and affection. I shared a great bond with him. If anyone can make a film on him or his life, it is only me because no one knew him that well as I know him. Those who did know him are not alive.”

Meanwhile, Gulzar, a renowned filmmaker and songwriter himself, had a unique praise for the People’s Poet, as he told DD Urdu, “If you look at his film career, then it has to be said, that Sahir sahab never took to the film medium, in fact it was the medium that embraced him. Jo unka andaaz tha wo medium ne apna liya, ye unki sabse badi khubi hai. Ego thi unhe, unke kad ke barabar hi thi ego bhi. Ye Sahir sahab ke wajah se pehli baar hua ki Vividha Bharti pe geetkar ka naam aana shuru hua tha. Ye sirf unke wajah se hua; Sahir sahab ne Film Writers Association ke through gaane band karwa diye the aur kaha tha jab tak shayar ka naam nahi aayega tab tak gaane bhi nahi aayenge. Ziddi bhi the, aur unke wajah se ye waqar mila shayaron ko” (His style of writing was not particularly suited or was meant for showbiz, but the cinematic medium took to him completely. This was something special about him. He never changed his manner of writing, the movies changed themselves to accommodate his style. He had ego as well, as big and tall as his height, if I may add. It was because of him that for the first time, Vivadha Bharti started acknowledging lyricists, it had never happened before. He got this done via his influence in the Film Writers Association. He said the songs won’t play until the names of lyricists are also read out, and so it was. He was stubborn, and he got this done for us writers).

Revealing that they once lived in the same building, Gulzar concluded, “Sahir sahab lived in the same building as I did, badi apne jaisi shaksiyat thi unki, kam bolte the (He really behaved and seemed like one of us, he was not really a talker). He was the first one among us who owned a car. He lived life on his own terms, and that is how he composed as well.”

Known for his realistic angst-ridden songs, Sahir Ludhianvi worked as a songwriter for over 30 years, before passing away in 1980 in Bombay, at the age of 59.

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