Did you know? Gulzar advocates making partition films

Gulzar also advocated incorporating partition stories into school and college syllabi.

Lyricist-writer-film-maker Gulzar feels that making films on the theme of 1947 partition would help in clearing the air on the Indian and Pakistani sides.

“Unlike the films on two World Wars, both Indian and Pakistani governments didn’t allow us to make films on partition. Their worry was that it could create unrest and flare up communal tension. But in reality, it would have purged out the bitter feeling — bhadaas nikal jaati,” he said.

He also advocated incorporating partition stories into school and college syllabi, according to the Times of India.

Gulzar was invited at a speaker session on 100 years of Indian cinema, where he contended that a 100-year-long journey is not a long one. “Literature is thousands of years old. So, [this] is just the beginning,” he remarked.

On Indian cinema being laden with songs, Gulzar said, “Saying a story through music has been our tradition, which has been passed on through generations.” Stating that melodies of yesteryear reflect the tranquility that was prevalent then, he said, “Peace and calmness of old melodies represented that time. If that time comes back, the sukoon will return to fine arts.”

Published in The Express Tribune, October 28^th, 2013.

Like Life & Style on Facebook, follow @ETLifeandStyle on Twitter for the latest in fashion, gossip and entertainment.