At an age where most legends are content to rest on their laurels and look back at a lifetime of masterpieces, Gulzar Saab remains focused on the future. Specifically, a future that involves the wide-eyed wonder of children. Recently, the veteran poet, lyricist, and filmmaker expressed a sentiment that warmed the hearts of fans across generations: his deep-seated love for writing for children’s films.
For Gulzar, writing for kids isn’t just a side project or a simplified version of his “serious” work. It is a profound passion that he treats with the same—if not more—rigor as his soulful ghazals.
We often forget that the man who gave us the haunting depth of Maachis and the lyrical complexity of Dil Se is the same genius who gave us the iconic Jungle Book theme. Who can forget the playful innocence of Lakdi Ki Kaathi?
Gulzar’s recent comments remind us that he views children as the most honest audience. He believes that you cannot “talk down” to a child. To write for them, you have to find the child within yourself again—a process he clearly finds more liberating than writing for adults. While adult cinema often gets bogged down in tropes of romance, betrayal, and social angst, children’s stories allow for pure imagination, where a tree can talk and the moon is a toy.
During his recent interaction, Gulzar highlighted a few key reasons why children’s cinema remains his favorite playground. Children don’t care about the “brand” of the writer. They care about the story. If a song is catchy and a story is engaging, they give you their heart.
It is easy to use big words to sound profound. It is incredibly difficult to use simple words to express a deep emotion. Gulzar masters this balance, making his work accessible but never “shallow.”
He feels there is a massive void in quality content for Indian children. By writing for this demographic, he isn’t just entertaining; he’s helping shape the aesthetic and cultural sensibilities of the next generation.
What makes a Gulzar-penned children’s story different? It’s the sensory details. He doesn’t just write a script; he writes the smell of the rain, the sound of a rustling leaf, and the feeling of a grandmother’s hug. He treats children as intelligent beings capable of understanding complex emotions like friendship, loss, and bravery. To know such latest updates tuned to tellyboosters.com Thank you!
