# Javed Akhtar

Javed Akhtar (born 17 January 1947) is an Indian screenwriter, lyricist and poet. Known for his work in Hindi cinema, he has won five National Film Awards, and received the Padma Shri in 1999 and the Padma Bhushan in 2007, two of India's highest civilian honours.
Akhtar came to recognition in the duo Salim–Javed, and earned his breakthrough as a screenwriter with 1973's Zanjeer. He went on to write the films Deewaar and Sholay, both released in 1975; they earned a cult following, and had a significant impact in popular culture. He later earned praise for his work as a lyricist, 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, and was a member of parliament in Rajya Sabha. For his work, he received the Richard Dawkins Award in 2020.
In 2024, Amazon Prime released a three-part documentary series about the Salim-Javed screenwriting duo, Angry Young Men.

## Early life

Javed Akhtar was born in 1947 in Gwalior. His father Jan Nisar Akhtar was a Bollywood film songwriter and Urdu poet. His paternal grandfather Muztar Khairabadi 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 declared the Indian Rebellion of 1857 against the western colonies. 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 close to the word jadoo. He spent most of his childhood and was schooled in Lucknow. He graduated from Saifiya College in Bhopal.

## 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 (1971), followed by Haathi Mere Saathi (1971) 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 films – Premada Kanike and Raja Nanna Raja.
Of the 24 films they wrote, 20 were hits. The scripts they wrote, but which were not successful at box office include Adhikar (1971), Aakhri Dao (1975), Immaan Dharam (1977) 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

   “There are certain things that I’d like to make clear at the very outset. Don’t get carried away by my name — Javed Akhtar. I am not revealing a secret, I am saying something that I have said many times, in writing or on TV, in public… I’m an atheist, I have no religious beliefs. And I don’t believe in spirituality of some kind".
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 with Zoya. Farhan was married to Adhuna Akhtar, a hair stylist. Despite having an Islamic upbringing, Akhtar declared himself to be an "equal opportunity atheist" who is against all faiths, and also brought up his children Farhan and Zoya Akhtar as atheists.
Akhtar married Shabana Azmi, the daughter of Urdu poet, Kaifi Azmi and later divorced Irani. Akhtar's uncle, Asrar-ul-Haq "Majaz" was also an Urdu poet. His uncle, Ansar Harvani, was a member of the Indian independence movement and an elected Member of Parliament. Akhtar's aunt, Hamida Salim, was an Indian author, economist and educator as well.

## Awards and nominations

Javed was awarded the civilian honour of Padma Shri by the Government of India in 1999, followed by the Padma Bhushan in 2007. In 2013, he received the Sahitya Akademi Award in Urdu, India's second highest literary honour, for his poetry collection Lava. In 2019, he was conferred with an honorary doctorate (Doctor of Letters) by the Jamia Hamdard 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".
| Year | Award | Category | Outcome | Work |
| 1996 | National Film Awards | Best Lyrics | Won | Saaz |
| 1997 | National Film Awards | Best Lyrics | Won | Border |
| 1998 | National Film Awards | Best Lyrics | Won | Godmother |
| 2000 | National Film Awards | Best Lyrics | Won | Refugee |
| 2001 | National Film Awards | Best Lyrics | Won | Lagaan |
| 1995 | Filmfare Awards | Best Lyricist | Won | "Ek Ladki Ko Dekha" from 1942: A Love Story |
| 1997 | Filmfare Awards | Best Lyricist | Won | "Ghar Se Nikalte" from Papa Kehte Hai |
| 1989 | Filmfare Awards | Best Lyricist | Nominated | "Ek Do Teen" from Tezaab |
| 1990 | Filmfare Awards | Best Dialogue | Won | Main Azaad Hoon |
| 1998 | Filmfare Awards | Best Lyricist | Won | "Sandese Aate Hai" from Border |
| 1998 | Filmfare Awards | Best Lyricist | Nominated | "Chand Taare" from Yes Boss |
| 1999 | Filmfare Awards | Best Lyricist | Nominated | "Mere Mehboob Mere Sanam" from Duplicate |
| 1984 | Filmfare Awards | Best Story | Nominated | Betaab |
| 1985 | Filmfare Awards | Best Story | Nominated | Mashaal |
| 1986 | Filmfare Awards | Best Story | Nominated | Arjun |
| 2001 | Filmfare Awards | Best Lyricist | Won | "Panchchi Nadiyaan" from Refugee |
| 2002 | Filmfare Awards | Best Lyricist | Won | "Radha Kaise Naa Jale" from Lagaan |
| 2002 | Filmfare Awards | Best Lyricist | Nominated | "Mitwa" from Lagaan |
| 2011 | Mirchi Music Awards | Album of The Year | Nominated | Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara |
| 2011 | Mirchi Music Awards | Lyricist of The Year | Won | "Khwabon Ke Parindey" from Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara |
| 2011 | Mirchi Music Awards | Lyricist of The Year | Nominated | "Senorita" from Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara |
| 2012 | Mirchi Music Awards | Lyricist of The Year | Won | "Jee Le Zara" from Talaash |
| 2014 | Mirchi Music Awards | Lifetime Achievement Award | Won | - |
| 2015 | Mirchi Music Awards | Album of The Year | Nominated | Dil Dhadakne Do |
| 2015 | Mirchi Music Awards | Lyricist of The Year | Nominated | "Phir Bhi Yeh Zindagi" from Dil Dhadakne Do |

## Filmography
### As screenwriter
#### As Salim-Javed

| Year | Film | Language | Director | Cast | Notes |
| 1971 | Andaz | Hindi | Ramesh Sippy | Rajesh Khanna, Hema Malini, Shammi Kapoor, Simi Garewal | Written as "Salim-Javed" |
| 1971 | Adhikar | Hindi | S.M. Sagar | Ashok Kumar, Nanda, Deb Mukherjee | Written as "Salim-Javed" |
| 1971 | Haathi Mere Saathi | Hindi | M. A. Thirumugham | Rajesh Khanna, Tanuja | Written as "Salim-Javed" |
| 1972 | Seeta Aur Geeta | Hindi | Ramesh Sippy | Hema Malini, Dharmendra, Sanjeev Kumar | Written as "Salim-Javed" |
| 1973 | Yaadon Ki Baaraat | Hindi | Nasir Hussain | Dharmendra, Vijay Arora, Tariq Khan | Written as "Salim-Javed" |
| 1973 | Zanjeer | Hindi | Prakash Mehra | Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bhaduri, Pran | Written as "Salim-Javed" |
| 1974 | Majboor | Hindi | Ravi Tandon | Amitabh Bachchan, Parveen Babi, Pran | Written as "Salim-Javed" |
| 1974 | Haath Ki Safai | Hindi | Prakash Mehra | Randhir Kapoor, Vinod Khanna, Hema Malini, Simi Garewal, Ranjeet | Written as "Salim-Javed" |
| 1975 | Deewaar | Hindi | Yash Chopra | Amitabh Bachchan, Shashi Kapoor, Parveen Babi, Neetu Singh | Written as "Salim-Javed" |
| 1975 | Sholay | Hindi | Ramesh Sippy | Dharmendra, Amitabh Bachchan, Sanjeev Kumar, Hema Malini, Jaya Bhaduri | Written as "Salim-Javed" |
| 1975 | Aakhri Dao | Hindi | A. Salaam | Jeetendra, Saira Banu, Danny Denzongpa | Written as "Salim-Javed" |
| 1976 | Premada Kanike | Kannada | V. Somashekhar | Rajkumar, Aarathi | Written as "Salim-Javed" |
| 1976 | Raja Nanna Raja | Kannada | A. V. Seshagiri Rao | Rajkumar, Aarathi | Written as "Salim-Javed" |
| 1977 | Immaan Dharam | Hindi | Desh Mukherjee | Amitabh Bachchan, Shashi Kapoor, Sanjeev Kumar, Rekha | Written as "Salim-Javed" |
| 1977 | Chacha Bhatija | Hindi | Manmohan Desai | Dharmendra, Randhir Kapoor, Hema Malini | Written as "Salim-Javed" |
| 1978 | Trishul | Hindi | Yash Chopra | Amitabh Bachchan, Sanjeev Kumar, Shashi Kapoor, Hema Malini | Written as "Salim-Javed" |
| 1978 | Don | Hindi | Chandra Barot | Amitabh Bachchan, Zeenat Aman, Pran | Written as "Salim-Javed" |
| 1979 | Kaala Patthar | Hindi | Yash Chopra | Amitabh Bachchan, Shashi Kapoor, Rakhee Gulzar, Shatrughan Sinha, Parveen Babi, Neetu Singh | Written as "Salim-Javed" |
| 1980 | Dostana | Hindi | Raj Khosla | Amitabh Bachchan, Shatrughan Sinha, Zeenat Aman, Pran (actor), Amrish Puri | Written as "Salim-Javed" |
| 1980 | Shaan | Hindi | Ramesh Sippy | Sunil Dutt, Shashi Kapoor, Amitabh Bachchan, Rakhee Gulzar, Kulbhushan Kharbanda | Written as "Salim-Javed" |
| 1981 | Kranti | Hindi | Manoj Kumar | Manoj Kumar, Dilip Kumar, Hema Malini, Shashi Kapoor, Shatrughan Sinha, Parveen Babi | Written as "Salim-Javed" |
| 1982 | Shakti | Hindi | Ramesh Sippy | Dilip Kumar, Amitabh Bachchan, Raakhee, Anil Kapoor | Written as "Salim-Javed" |
| 1985 | Zamana | Hindi | Ramesh Talwar | Rajesh Khanna, Rishi Kapoor, Poonam Dhillon, Ranjeeta Kaur | Written as "Salim-Javed" |
| 1987 | Mr. India | Hindi | Shekhar Kapur | Anil Kapoor, Sridevi, Amrish Puri | Written as "Salim-Javed" |

#### As Javed Akhtar

| Year | Film | Language | Director | Cast | Notes |
| 1983 | Betaab | Hindi | Rahul Rawail | Sunny Deol, Amrita Singh | Written as "Javed Akhtar" |
| 1984 | Duniya | Hindi | Ramesh Talwar | Dilip Kumar, Rishi Kapoor, Amrita Singh | Written as "Javed Akhtar" |
| 1984 | Mashaal | Hindi | Yash Chopra | Dilip Kumar, Anil Kapoor, Waheeda Rehman | Written as "Javed Akhtar" |
| 1985 | Saagar | Hindi | Ramesh Sippy | Rishi Kapoor, Kamal Haasan, Dimple Kapadia | Written as "Javed Akhtar" |
| 1985 | Arjun | Hindi | Rahul Rawail | Sunny Deol, Dimple Kapadia | Written as "Javed Akhtar" |
| 1985 | Meri Jung | Hindi | Subhash Ghai | Anil Kapoor, Meenakshi Sheshadri | Written as "Javed Akhtar" |
| 1987 | Dacait | Hindi | Rahul Rawail | Sunny Deol, Raakhee | Written as "Javed Akhtar" |
| 1989 | Main Azaad Hoon | Hindi | Tinnu Anand | Amitabh Bachchan, Shabana Azmi | Written as "Javed Akhtar" |
| 1992 | Khel | Hindi | Rakesh Roshan | Anil Kapoor, Madhuri Dixit | Written as "Javed Akhtar" |
| 1993 | Roop Ki Rani Choron Ka Raja | Hindi | Satish Kaushik | Anil Kapoor, Sridevi | Written as "Javed Akhtar" |
| 1995 | Prem | Hindi | Satish Kaushik | Sanjay Kapoor, Tabu | Written as "Javed Akhtar" |
| 1998 | Kabhi Na Kabhi | Hindi | Priyadarshan | Anil Kapoor, Jackie Shroff | Written as "Javed Akhtar" |
| 2004 | Lakshya | Hindi | Farhan Akhtar | Hrithik Roshan, Preity Zinta, Amitabh Bachchan | Written as "Javed Akhtar" |
| 2006 | Don: The Chase Begins Again | Hindi | Farhan Akhtar | Shah Rukh Khan, Priyanka Chopra | Written as "Javed Akhtar" |