Urdu Markaz, a non-governmental organisation working for the promotion of Urdu language, celebrated National Screenwriters’ Day on Sunday at its centre in Madanpura. The celebration hosted film writer Sohail Akhtar who spoke on the changing images and language in Hindustani Film.
January 5 is celebrated as National Screenwriters’ Day to pay tribute to screenwriters. Urdu Markaz hostel a discussion about the role of screenwriters in Indian cinema. Writer Sohail Akhtar spoke on the changing images in films ranging from the film ‘Mother India’ where a woman is dependent on her husband to the film ‘Arth’ where a woman is portrayed self sufficient.
Zubair Azmi, founder of Urdu Markaz, spoke about writer Khwaja Ahmed Abbas, who is known for writing multiple films of Raj Kapoor including Awaara, Shree 420, Mera Naam Joker, Bobby and Henna. Azmi said that Kapoor and Abbas both were nehruvian socialists but the former was a romantic socialist and the latter had social consciousness.
“Abbas dealt with class conflict in ‘Awaara’, corruption in ‘Shri 420’ and crony capitalism in ‘Jaagte Raho’. The angry young man formulation of Salim Javed in Zanjeer Deewaar Trisul has metamorphic rise from moral seriousness of Dharmendra in Anupama, Naya Zamana, Satya Kaam and preceded by Abbas’ angry man but with a sarcastic smile,” said Azmi.
