Javed Akhtar is an institution of the Mumbai film industry. Along with Salim Khan, he wrote screenplays for movies which acquired a cult status in South Asia as a whole in the 1970s.
After his partnership with Salim Khan broke up, he continued to write scripts for the movies but did not confine himself to just doing that for he wrote poetry and lyrics too. His interests go beyond the movies for he takes interest in public issues and has served as a nominated member of the Rajya Sabha. His fan following is not limited to India but extends beyond its borders including Pakistan.
Recently, Javed Akhtar visited Pakistan. He participated in the Faiz festival in Lahore from where he went to Karachi to take part in the Karachi literary festival.
In response to a question at the former event, Akhtar said, “I can say with total confidence and pride that we have in India done a lot of good work since 1947 till today, but it could have been even better. Today, we are one of the most industrialised countries of the world but it could have been better if the region had been together."
He expressed the view that regions progressed together and gave the example of other regions including Western Europe and North America.