On Javed Akhtar’s birthday, revisiting his 7 most unserious songs

Javed Akhtar, famous screenwriter, lyricist and poet, clocked his 79th birthday on Wednesday. His career as a lyricist spans over 40 decades, with many beautiful and thoughtful songs to his credit. Javed has won many awards, including National Film Awards, Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan in 2007. (Also Read | Javed Akhtar fans roast Sandeep Reddy Vanga over ‘your art form is false’ jibe, flood Twitter with lyricist’s best work)
Many of his songs include Yeh Kahan Aa Gaye Hum and Dekha Ek Khwab (Silsila), Tum Ko Dekha To Yeh Khayal Aaya (Saath Saath), Ek Ladki Ko Dekha (1942: A Love Story), Ghar Se Nikalte (Papa Kehte Hai), Sandese Aate Hai (Border), Panchchi Nadiyaan (Refugee) and Radha Kaise Naa Jale (Lagaan).
But did you know that Javed Akhtar has also penned some fun and groovy songs? On his 79th birthday, we bring you a few of the songs in the last few years which will make you wonder if he indeed wrote the lyrics. Keep reading for his seven most unserious songs, which were, by the way, huge hits! Here’s what they are:
The song is from the 2007 film Om Shanti Om and was sung by Sukhwinder Singh, Nisha Mascarenhas, and others. The song was picturised on Shah Rukh Khan. A part of the lyrics goes: “Ranjish ka chala tha… fuwwara/ Phoota jo khwaab ka… gubbara/To phirta hoon mein London, Paris, New York, LA, Sans Francisco.” While another part goes: “Phir kyun na hua.. mazar mera/ Woh mera sanam.. dilbar mera/ Dil tod gaya, mujhe chhod gaya/ Woh pichhle maheene ki chhabis ko.” The song, though was a massive hit.
This song, sung by Kishore Kumar, is from the 1978 film Don. The track stars Amitabh Bachchan and Zeenat Aman, among others. The music for the film was composed by Anandji and Kalyanji. The song was also a hit and became a fan favourite. To this day, this song is sung by fans of all generations. A part of the lyrics go: “Ek kanya kunwari/Hamri surat pe mar gayi/Haaye haaye haaye/Ek meethi qatari/ Hamre dil mein utar gayi/Haaye haaye/ Kaisi gori gori/Woh teekhi teekhi chhori wah wah.”
The song is from the 2011 film Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara. It was sung by Abhay Deol, Farhan Akhtar, Hrithik Roshan, Maria, and del Mar Fernandez. The music was composed by Shankar, Ehsaan, and Loy. The effervescent song has been picturised on Hrithik Roshan, Abhay Deol, and Farhan Akhtar. A part of the lyrics is: “Chahat ke do pal bhi, mil paaye/Duniya mein yeh bhi kum hai kya/ Do pal ko toh aao kho jaaye/ Bhoole hum hota/ Gumm hai kya senorita/ Suno suno senorita/ Kehte hain hum kya/ Jo bhi pal beeta/ Hey senorita/ Har pal tumne hai dil jeeta/ Bus itni si toh baat hai.”
The song is from the 2008 film Rock On. It has been picturised on Farhan Akhtar, Arjun Rampal, Purab Kohli, and Luke Kenny. Farhan sang the song, Javed penned the lyrics, and Shankar, Ehsaan and Loy composed the music. The lyrics make use of the most ordinary items to create a catchy rhyme: “Present milli ek ghadi/ Pyaari thi mujhe badi/ Mary jane ka ek packet/ Meri denim ki jacket/ Do one day match ke passes/ Mere naye naye sunglasses/Pichhle saath dinon mein maine khoya/ Kabhi khud pe hasaa main aur kabhi khud pe roya.”
The song features an ensemble cast–Shahrukh Khan, Rani Mukherjee, Amitabh Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan, Preity Zinta, and Kirron Kher. It is from the 2006 film Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna. Mahalakshmi Iyer, Shaan, and Shankar Mahadevan have sung the track. The music is by Shankar, Ehsaan, and Loy. A part of the lyrics is: “Ye Lachkile Se Tan/Ye Balkhate Badan/ Pehle Dil Hai Maangte/ Phir Maangte Hai Jaan/ Ye Rangeen Bijliyaan/ Ye Jaadu Garniyan/ Dekhin Hai Sau Baar Par Hoon Aaj Bhi Hairan.”
The track is from the 2003 film Kal Ho Naa Ho. It has been sung by KK, Loy Mendonsa, Shaan, and Vasundhara Das. The song has been picturised on Shah Rukh Khan, Preity Zinta, and Saif Ali Khan. A part of the lyrics goes: “Josh mein naachti rangeen shaam hai/ Bin piye jhoomta haisama/ Hosh ka ab yahan bolo kya kaam hai/ Tez hai dhadkane dil javan/Yuh hi reh hai theek hai na/ Aur hai kehna to khul ke kaho.”
The song is from the 2023 film The Archies. It has been penned by Javed with music by Shankar, Ehsaan and Loy. The song features Agastya Nanda, Khushi Kapoor, Suhana Khan, Vedang Raina and Yuvraj Menda. It has been sung by Tejas and shows a boy trying to woo two girls with the same song. A part of the lyrics goes: “Use friend kahun ya girlfriend kahun/ Ab jo bhi hai kehne ka trend kahun/ Jo bhi dil mein hai kahun ya chupp rahun/ Maine aaj tak hai na jaana.”
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