In this richly entertaining book, Gulzar shares his life and passions with inimitable charm and candour.

Poet, storyteller, director, scriptwriter and lyricist, Gulzar is a towering figure of contemporary Indian literature and cinema. Ever since he wrote his first song—the unforgettable ‘Mora gora ang lai le’ for Bimal Roy’s Bandini (1963)—he has won countless admirers with his nuanced, sensitive and quietly innovative work. From the endearing ‘Lakdi ki kaathi’, that a generation grew up singing, to the Oscar-winning ‘Jai ho’—his songs have enthralled millions. His unique and much acclaimed contribution to the world of poetry continues to reflect our changing times, with fresh idiom and delicate turn of phrase.

In this book of conversations with Nasreen Munni Kabir, Gulzar speaks with insight, candour and gentle humour about his life and work: his school days in Old Delhi, where he wrote his early poems; working in a garage in Mumbai before entering films; his association with legends such as Bimal Roy, Balraj Sahni, Sahir Ludhianvi, Meena Kumari, Shailendra, S. D. Burman, Hemant Kumar, Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Lata Mangeshkar and R. D. Burman among others; his love of tennis; and his deep connection with his wife, the legendary Raakhee, his daughter Meghna and his grandson Samay.

About the Author:

Born in India, documentary filmmaker and writer Nasreen Munni Kabir lives in London, where she has made several programmes on Hindi cinema for Channel 4 TV, including the forty-six-part series Movie Mahal and The Inner/Outer World of Shah Rukh Khan. Her several books include Guru Dutt: A Life in Cinema; Talking Films and Talking Songs with Javed Akhtar; The Spirit of Music with A. R. Rahman; Lata Mangeshkar: In Her Own Voice; and five publications featuring the complete diaogue of classic films like Mughal-e-Azam and Awaara.