06 January,2010 09:50 AM IST | | Urmimala Banerjee
Whether it is moaning about the laundry bills (Meri Laundry Ka Yeh Bill) or celebrating new found love (Kehne Ko Jashan-e-Bahara), writer-poet-lyricist Javed Akhtar has given us a song for every occasion. Needless to say, Akhtar has a fan following that's equal to any Bollywood actor. CS met up with him to chat more about writing and matters close to his heart:
I enjoy writing screenplays as well as lyrics, though I have been doing more of the latter in the recent years. I have just finished writing the script for a play that's being produced by Wizcraft. It is similar to a Broadway play in terms of production and scale. It is a fantasy; a total entertainer with a lot of razzmatazz, special effects and all. I have also finished a script for a film, the official announcement of which will be made in the next couple of months.u00a0
Cinema now
I miss Dilip Kumar, but today's films have their own charm. Filmmakers are trying to be more realistic in terms of performances and dialogues. People are experimenting with different kinds of stories and ideas, which is a good thing. Filmmakers have developed a bond with NRI audiences, but we are yet to establish a connection with people in small towns. Nowadays, films are more understated as compared to the ones in the earlier decades.u00a0
Write time
I write for the common man, and so my lyrics are easy to understand. If a sizeable segment of the population cannot follow your lines, then you need to take a second look at your language skills. While the music of Rock On might have wowed the audiences, it didn't get the same response from the critics. That year, all the awards came to me for Jodha Akbar. The songs in that film had all the conventional film lyric metaphors. But Rock On had lines like 'Meri Laundry Ka Bill' that were innovative and here-and-now. This song could have sounded like a parody, but that didn't happen. It retained its bit of poetry. Unfortunately, critics failed to notice this.
Proud papa
I had taken it for granted that both Farhan and Zoya will enter the film industry. Needless to say, I am very happy and proud. But, what makes me truly happy is the fact that they are doing good work, and have found success while doing something worthwhile.u00a0
