'We could no longer work as a team'

Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar worked together as screenwriters for some of the most iconic Bollywood films, such as ‘Sholay’, ‘Don’, ‘Deewaar’, ‘Zanjeer’ and many others. In a new interview, Javed spoke about their partnership and how Salim had encouraged him to become a screenwriter in the first place. The lyricist also spoke about how they parted ways after working together for more than a decade.

In a recent interview, Javed also revealed that before becoming a writer and lyricist, he wanted to become a film director. He was working as an assistant director and dialogue writer in the 1966 film ‘Sarhadi Lutera’ when he became friends with Salim, who is actor Salman Khan’s father. Salim was playing a small role in the film.

In an interview with a top leading news agency, Akhtar talked about his friendship with Salim Khan: “Salim was one of the few who would encourage me. Had I been living somewhere else, we might not have met often, but because I got a room close to his home, I would often visit him.”

Speaking further about his association with Salim, Javed recalled why they drifted apart and stopped working together. He said that once they became successful, their individual lives became bigger than their bond.

“In our struggling days, we were one tea. We did not have any other friends; we would work together from morning until evening. We would even have meals together. Out of 24 hours, we would spend 15-16 hours with each other. But as we became successful, new people came into our lives and our friends’ circle got separated. The mental rapport we had was broken. We could no longer work as a team.”