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Repair common Windows errors and clear accumulated junk for a smoother, more stable PC - no reinstall needed.Free scan · no reinstallGulzar’s path into film began with a writer’s ambition, not a plan to become a lyricist. He has said writing was his first choice, but that it was difficult to earn a living as a writer; cinema became a place where he could work with language while making a livelihood. The “90” in this familiar birthday framing needs qualification: sources give two different birth years, 1934 and 1936.
Why is Gulzar described as “90”?
The age in the headline is not settled by the sources cited here. The Tribune published its “Gulzar at 90” interview in August 2024, and Saregama gives his birth date as 18 August 1934. A Gulzar.info biography instead lists 18 August 1936. The Indian Express wrote in March 2025 that he would turn 91 in four months, which is consistent with 1934. These accounts do not agree, so it is more precise to attribute an age to a particular source than to present one as independently verified.
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Selected Poems | $9.70 | Buy on Amazon |
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Raat Pashmine Ki (Hindi Edition) | $13.69 | Buy on Amazon |
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Caged ...: Memories Have Names | $16.50 | Buy on Amazon |
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Raat Pashmine Ki (Hindi) (Hindi Edition) | $2.00 | Buy on Amazon |
The Tribune’s 2024 interview, Saregama’s birthday profile and The Indian Express’s 2025 interview provide the respective birthday framing, birth date and later age reference.
How did a would-be writer find a path into cinema?
In his 2025 Indian Express interview, Gulzar said becoming a writer was his first choice, but making a living as a writer was difficult at the time. While working in a Mumbai garage, he joined the Indian People’s Theatre Association. Lyricist Shailendra urged him to meet filmmaker Bimal Roy, who later employed him as an assistant on Kabuliwala (1961). Saregama identifies Bandini (1963) as his first film as a songwriter, featuring “Mora Gora Rang Layle.”
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This history suggests neither a simple rejection of literature nor a career born only of chance. Film offered a practical livelihood and a collaborative setting for a writer already drawn to poetry. Gulzar put the connection plainly: “Somehow, my passion for poetry inspired me to write songs for films.”
What shaped his attention to language?
Reading across languages
The Indian Express recounts that Gulzar encountered Rabindranath Tagore through an Urdu translation of The Gardener when he was ten. He later translated Tagore’s poetry into two volumes. That account points to a literary life shaped by reading across languages, not just by writing for film.
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In a 2024 interview with The Tribune, he described translation as a way to learn and pass that learning on: “All the translations that I have done, which I am sharing with people, are not for the sake of translation but for the sake of learning.” This is the newspaper’s English rendering of his remarks. It offers a grounded account of what translation means to him, without implying a specific drafting routine.
Curiosity beyond the page
The Indian Express reports that Gulzar reads new books to stay current, browses NASA’s website and follows developments in AI. In the same interview, he used a Panchatantra story to explain the need to consider the consequences of power: “Gyaan ki shakti maanta hun. Par shakti ka gyaan zaroori hai (I’m aware of the power of knowledge. However, we should also be aware of the repercussions of power).” Curiosity, in this account, is not confined to literary subjects.
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What does he say about a writer’s responsibility?
Gulzar has spoken about writing in terms of both care and honesty. In the Indian Express interview, he said: “Writer ko cautious hona zaroori hai (a writer should be cautious) … A writer should also be honest about what he/she wants to convey.” The emphasis is on what a writer communicates and the responsibility that comes with it—not on a documented formula for composing lyrics.
He also described finding a comfortable place at his desk: “Now, I have found a space at my (writing) desk that I am most comfortable with.” The statement gives a glimpse of his working environment, but does not establish a fixed schedule, daily routine or formal writing method. “Rigour” and “discipline” are best understood here as ways to frame sustained attention to language and ideas, rather than as biographical claims about a prescribed process.
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Why his work cannot be reduced to film lyrics
Gulzar’s career spans poetry, film lyrics, screenwriting, direction, prose and translation. The Indian Express describes a turn toward literature after Hu Tu Tu (1999); Penguin Random House India identifies him as a poet, scriptwriter and director. Film songs are a major part of his public work, but they sit within a broader literary and cinematic practice.
His major honours also cross those fields. Penguin Random House India lists the Sahitya Akademi Award (2002), Padma Bhushan (2004), Dadasaheb Phalke Award (2014) and Jnanpith Award (2024). The Indian Express identifies the Jnanpith as India’s highest literary honour and says it recognized his contribution to Urdu literature.
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For readers who want to explore the work in book form, Penguin Random House India’s Gulzar page lists titles including 100 Lyrics and Caged… Memories Have Names. The Indian Express describes Caged… as combining poetry and reminiscence.
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