Gulzar is a writer, a lyricist, a director and, at heart, a poet. His films, sensitive, lyrical, and yet successful, were a welcome relief from the violent films that filled the 1970s and 1980s.
Born Sampooran Singh Kalra in Deena, in the Jhelum District in what is now Pakistan, he came to Delhi after the partition during independence as a poet. He joined Bimal Roy Productions in 1961 and got his first break as a lyricist writing for Bimal Roy's Bandini (1963). The success of this film made him Bimalda's full-time assistant and got him writing for films by acclaimed directors like Hrishikesh Mukherjee and Asit Sen. Some of the films he has written include Anand (1971), Guddi (1971), Bawarchi (1972), and Namak Haraam (1973) for Mukherjee; and Do Dooni Char (1968), Khamoshi (1969), and Safar (1970) for Sen.
Gulzar made his directorial https://imdb.com/SearchBios?debutSearchBios?debut with Mere Apne (1971).He then went on to make Parichay (1972) (loosely based on The Sound of Music (1965)) and Koshish (1972), which gave a superb look at the trials of a deaf and dumb couple (played by Jaya Bhaduri and Sanjeev Kumar). From this film came a mutually beneficial partnership with Sanjeev Kumar, which resulted in fine films like Mausam (1975), Angoor (1982)Namkeen (1982), and the classic film Aandhi (1975), which had been banned for a while. However, Gulzar didn't always depend on Sanjeev Kumar: the stars of the time, such as Jeetendra, Vinod Khanna, and Hema Malini, worked with him in unglamorous roles and gave some of their best and introspective performances in films like Achanak (1973), Khushboo (1975), and Kinara (1977).
Musically, Gulzar was unbeatable. Being a lyricist and collaborating with film composers, he always had a high quality of music in his films, especially with Rahul Dev Burman. And while Burman became a pop icon with his tunes from Yaadon Ki Baaraat (1973) and Hum Kisise Kum Naheen (1977), he also gave Gulzar classic pieces with which to work in Khushboo (1975) and Ijaazat (1987).
Sadly, the 1980s and 1990s saw a decline in Gulzar the director, and although films such as Lekin... (1990) and Maachis (1996) had their moments, his last film to date, Hu Tu Tu (1999), was a misfire. However, he tried his hand at television with the much acclaimed television film Mirza Ghalib (1988) (TV). Made about the poet's life and starring Naseeruddin Shah in the title role, the serial was a landmark in Indian Television.He has written screenplays for films like Masoom (1983) and Rudaali (1993), and has written the lyrics for films like Dil Se.. (1998) and Saathiya (2002).
He has written a number of books on poetry, children's stories and short stories. Married to the yesteryear renowned heroine Rakhee they have a daughter named Meghana who is a director herself.
Source:-Internet.
