'One person says let us move ahead, the other doesn't want to.'
Namrata Rao's docu-series Angry Young Men says a lot about the Salim-Javed partnership, but nothing about their split.
When Subhash K Jha asks Javed Akhtar about it, he replies, "I can't help you with that. We parted ways. What happened, even our wives don't have the answer. Neither of us has ever spoken in the media. We have always been very civil and dignified, and we maintain a cordial relationship.
"If there comes a time in their life when people have to separate from somebody, a partner or a spouse, this is how it should be. There is no kind of acrimony.
"Although it is very dramatic and exciting to believe that something happened, like the wives had a fight, they had no connection (with the split). They still don't know the details of our relationship.
"Writing and scripting is a creative process. It is not an industry. You don't have any scale or litmus test. In a creative collaboration, the mental compatibility is imperative. When you're unsuccessful, you are a struggler and start as nobody. Then, you only have yourself to look out for.
"When you move forward in life, you form new relationships and friendships. Your priorities change. Many dormant desires, ambitions, interests and hobbies start emerging because now your basic problem of earning a living is solved and you are doing well.
"So you grow apart from those who were a part of your life earlier.
"One person says let us move ahead, the other doesn't want to. I can't give you any other explanation."
"Arjun came along for me right after the split," Javedsaab says about the 1985 film, starring Sunny Deol and Dimple Kapadia.
"I didn't get an opportunity to regret the split because of Arjun. I became a successful songwriter and solo screenwriter. The decision in retrospective seems justified. I feel Salimsaab and I had reached the pinnacle of our productivity. We could only move downward."
Why are there no other celebrity writers besides Salim-Javed in Hindi cinema?
"There was one before us: Pandit Mukhram Sharma," Javedsaab says.
"His name used to be on the banner. So when Dhool Ka Phool released, it was 'B R Chopra presents Pandit Mukhram Sharma's Dhool Ka Phool directed by Yash Chopra'. There was a lot of respect for him. Pandit Mukhram Sharma had his own identity.
"I will not say that we do not have very good writers. People do not believe in your abilities after just one film. You have to prove yourself again and again. You have to create a track record."
