Gulzar turns 91: Celebrating the versatile lyricist, director, and Bollywood legend.

Gulzar: One Man, Many Colors

Gulzar is just one person, but he has so many talents. When he sits down to write songs, his very first one was “Mora Gora Ang Lai Le, Mohe Shyam Rang Dai De.” This song expresses a desire for dark skin. This was quite bold in a film industry that often valued fair skin above all else. When he writes screenplays, movies like ‘Anand’ come to life. Its main message is that “life should not be long, but great.”

When he takes the director’s chair, we get films like ‘Aandhi’, ‘Mausam’, and ‘Maachis’. These movies show emotions at their peak. They leave a storm of feelings inside you. When he moves from big screens to small ones and creates TV shows, we meet a masterpiece like ‘Mirza Ghalib’. When his inner child wakes up, he sings, “Jungle Jungle Baat Chali Hai Pata Chala Hai, Chaddi Pehankar Phool Khila Hai.”

Gulzar Steps into Directing with ‘Mere Apne’

After writing lyrics, screenplays, and dialogues, Gulzar tried his hand at directing in 1971. His first film as a director was ‘Mere Apne’. You’ve probably heard the famous line, “Shyam aaye toh usse kehna ki Chhenu aaya tha.” This hit dialogue is from Gulzar’s ‘Mere Apne’. The movie tells the story of an elderly widow, a relative, and two young men. The film was a big box office success. It also gave a major boost to the careers of Vinod Khanna and Shatrughan Sinha. The cast also included Meena Kumari, Deven Verma, Asit Sen, Asrani, Danny Denzongpa, Kesto Mukherjee, A. K. Hangal, Dinesh Thakur, Mehmood, and Yogita Bali.

‘Parichay’: A Comedy Drama, and ‘Koshish’: An Emotional Story of a Deaf-Mute Couple

In 1972, Gulzar brought us ‘Parichay’, starring Jeetendra, Jaya Bhaduri, Pran, and Sanjeev Kumar. This film tells the story of a young man looking for work. He ends up taking a job teaching five rebellious children. These kids had driven away many teachers before him. They live with their grandfather, Rai Sahab, who is very strict about time. The film’s story is quite engaging. It also explores themes of relationships and employment.

That same year, Gulzar also released ‘Koshish’, a heartbreaking romantic drama. It was about a deaf-mute couple. Sanjeev Kumar, Jaya Bhaduri, and Asrani played the main roles. The movie showed the struggles and pain of Hari Charan and Aarti, the deaf-mute couple. It also showed their fight to find their place in society. The story is very moving. Hari Charan raises his son alone after Aarti’s death. He has to battle society’s judgments during this time. Sanjeev Kumar won the National Award for Best Actor for his role. Both films were successful at the box office in 1972.

‘Achanak’ Based on the Nanavati vs. Maharashtra State Case

Gulzar also made films based on real events. He also brought social issues to light in his movies. He made ‘Achanak’ based on the K. M. Nanavati vs. State of Maharashtra case from 1958. This is the same case that later inspired Akshay Kumar’s film ‘Rustom’. Vinod Khanna played the lead role in ‘Achanak’. Lily Chakravarty, Farida Jalal, and Asrani also had important parts. What’s most unique is that, even as a lyricist himself, Gulzar’s film had no songs at all. This movie was well-loved and received many award nominations.

When Gulzar’s ‘Aandhi’ Was Banned During the Emergency; ‘Mausam’ Showed a Downpour of Emotions

In 1975, the country faced the Emergency. That was the same year the classic film ‘Sholay’ came out. Gulzar also made two movies that year that still stir up a sea of emotions inside you. First, Gulzar brought ‘Aandhi’, starring Sanjeev Kumar and Suchitra Sen. It’s a political drama film. It shows a couple who meet again years after being separated. The wife, Aarti Devi, is now a powerful politician. She stays at her husband’s hotel during her election campaign. People said this film was inspired by former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s life. However, the filmmakers denied this. Yet, Suchitra Sen’s look in the movie was quite similar to Indira Gandhi and Tarkeshwari Sinha. The film was a hit at the box office. It’s considered a cult film in the industry. This emotional romantic-political drama was even banned during the Emergency.

That same year, Gulzar released another film, ‘Mausam’. This was a musical romantic movie. In this film, Gulzar once again brought a flood of emotions. Starring Sanjeev Kumar and Sharmila Tagore, the film was a box office success. It also won the National Award for Second Best Feature Film. On top of that, ‘Mausam’ bagged the Filmfare Award for Best Film and Best Director.

He Also Directed the Cult Comedy ‘Angoor’

Gulzar directed deeply emotional films like ‘Aandhi’, ‘Koshish’, ‘Kinara’, and ‘Lekin’. But he also gave us ‘Angoor’, a cult comedy. ‘Angoor’ is based on Shakespeare’s ‘Comedy of Errors’. It tells the story of four sets of twins lost as children. Two of them look exactly alike. Sanjeev Kumar, Deven Verma, Moushumi Chatterjee, and Deepti Naval played the main roles. A comedy film like this was quite rare in 1982. But Gulzar brought it to life, and it became a cult classic. Later, a few other films followed a similar idea, like ‘Do Dooni Char’ from 1968 and Rohit Shetty’s ‘Cirkus’. However, none of these films achieved the success that Gulzar’s ‘Angoor’ did.

‘Namkeen’ Was Far Ahead of Its Time

Gulzar skillfully tackled social issues in his films. He did this beautifully in ‘Namkeen’, released in 1982. It showcased a burning issue related to women. People say that ‘Namkeen’ was a film ahead of its time. Critics praised the movie a lot. ‘Namkeen’ also won a National Award and Filmfare Awards. The film tells the story of three unmarried sisters living with their elderly mother in a Himachal Pradesh village. Their mother was once a ‘nautanki’ dancer. The movie shows how society views and treats a ‘nautanki’ dancer and her daughters. Shabana Azmi, Sharmila Tagore, Waheeda Rehman, Kiran Vairale, and Sanjeev Kumar played key roles.

Similarly, in his 1988 film ‘Libas’, Gulzar explored the topic of extra-marital affairs. Shabana Azmi, Naseeruddin Shah, and Raj Babbar were the lead actors in this movie.

Stepping Away from Direction After ‘Hu Tu Tu’

In 1996, Gulzar released the film ‘Maachis’. It told a story about terrorism. It also showed a different side of those involved in such acts. After ‘Hu Tu Tu’, which came out in 1999, Gulzar completely stopped directing. ‘Hu Tu Tu’ is a political drama. This film exposes corruption and the misuse of power in politics. Sunil Shetty, Nana Patekar, and Tabu were the main actors in the movie.