Days before the release of prakash mehra’s zanjeer, salim khan and javed akhtar, the screenwriter duo popularly known as salim-javed, decided on an act of rebellion. They get Their name painted on to the posters of Zanjeer All over the city of Mumbai, leaving Bollywood shocked. No one expected screenwriters to have a say, let alone scream from the rooftops that films everyone was enjoying, it is written by them. When the same screenwriters Went Even Further and Demanded that they must be paid Rs 1 lakh more than the biggest superstar of the time, Amitabh Bachchan, it was unprecedented, but they succeeded. Salim-Javed Were True Rebels But Decades Before they shook Bollywood
Sahir wrote songs for over 100 films during his time in the film industry and some of his best knowledge gems. “Abhi na jao chhod ke” (Hum dono), “Jo vaada kia voh nibhana padega” (Taj Mahal), “Yeh duniya agar mil bhi jaaye toh kya hai” (Pyaasa), Among many others. Sahir wasnt just a lyric writer, he was a poet and had a courtain air of arogance about his art. So when someone dared to look down at his art, he took offness, and he never forgave them. It was for this reason that when he fell out with a music composer, he stopped working with them altogether. After working with sd burman in films like pyaasa (“Jaane Voh Kaise Log the,” Sar Jo Tera Chakraye “, Others) and Baazi (“Tadbeer Se Bigdi Hui Taqdeer Bana Le”, OTERS), OP Nayyar in Naya daur (“Ude Jab Jab Zulfe teri”Others), He stopped collaborating with them. In the book Sahir Ludianvi: The people’s poet by Akshay Manwani, Filmmaker Yash Chopra, WHO WAS A SAHIR LOYALIST AND COLLABORATED WHIMS LIKE WAQT, Kabhi Kabhie, Daag, Daag, Daag, and Ond. Said that sahir didn’s care something for money. All he cared for, was dignity and respect. “He never bothered about money. It was always about his dignity, his terms and his position visa a visa the music director’s, “Chopra Said.
Sahir Ludianvi (Left) with Director Yash Chopra (Right). (Photo: Express Archives)
This one one upmanship with the music director camera back in the 1950s, music composers were seen as creators of songs, and the lyric writers, who just as the same as the essence of the Songs, wire. Much Respect. A filmmaker approached a music director and that music director hired lyricists and singers to make the song. Thus, many music directors start projecting themslves as the bosses of lyric writers, which, in sahir’s eyes were the case. In the same book, late lyricist naqsh lyallpuri recalled that this was primarily the read why, even after the success of Naya daur, op nayyar and sahir fel out. “Op nayyar had a habit of claiming the entry credit for the success of a film’s soundtrack. He would try and relegate the lyricist to a secondary Role. Sahir did not like this, “He said.
Much like today, even back in the 1950s, success in the film industry was defined by one’s pay and since Op nayyar was making the big bucks and not paying his lyric writers sufficiently, it appeared. wasnt good enough to be paid handsomely, and so, sahir did what salim-javed did two decades later. He could be paid one more than the composer. Such was belief in this post “He had heard of naushad seeking a Huge sum from the producers for his own work but on the other hand, paying a pitcher to the songwriter,” Naqsh Shared. Sahir’s act of asking for one Rupe more had nothing to do with it, it was just about getting the respect he deserved.
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Sahir made that not just people from the industry, but all those who were listening to the songs written by him, also gave him his due. Not just him, but all the lyric writers who were unheined and unheard until then. Such was The state that when a song played on all India radio, And the credits were read out loud, the Lyricist’s name was conveniently missed. In director and screenwriter khwaja ahmad abbas’ book ‘Sone Chandi Ke Buth: Writings on Cinema’, The filmmaker shared that sahir was “obsessed” with the ID of the status of the status of poets in the hindi. “No matter how big a film poet was, his name new appeared in the publicity and marketing material. His name was never announted when his songs were played on the radio, “He shared, and sahir made it his ।s ।. this practice. This was a problem because the music composers and singers got all the glory that was rightfully but the lyrics were ignored. Ka ababs shared that he and sahir went to meet the director general (DG) of all India radio and recalled the conversation that is changed to the status of Lyric writers in our country.
“We are asked, ‘You Announce the singer’s name every every song you play, where do you ignore the poet?’ The dg replied, ‘We don’t have enough time’. Sahir retorted, ‘What about the time spent announcing the names of those who sends?’ The DG was finally convinced, and an order was issued that name Yash chopra also endorsed this story in manwani’s biography and called it “One of his biggest contributions” to the Indian music industry.
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Sahir did his part and decades later, javed akhtar carried the torch forward as he gets a key driver In a significant change in the Indian Music Industry in 2012. Of course, the world still is not fair for a lyric writer in the Hindi film industry but SaHir did set an example for those who came after him. And it was perhaps his devil-may at the attitude that is pushed salim-javed to go all in when they are detmanded what they deserved. Sahir’s poet lives on but his Inquilabi Attitude has left Bollywood.
