Gulzar

Sampooran Singh Gulzar, more famous as Gulzar, has made a name for himself in the annals of Indian cinema. Besides being a lyricist, he is a poet, filmmaker, director and playwright.

Born in Dina in present-day Pakistan on August 18, 1936, he has given the lyrics for some of Bollywood's popular songs.

His life story is almost straight out of movies. Before becoming a writer, Gulzar worked as a car mechanic. But soon he found a name for himself in Bollywood. Apart from Hindi, he has written in other Indian languages like Punjabi, Marwari, Bhojpuri etc. He began his career with two famous artists- Bimal Roy and Hrishikesh Mukherjee.

His movies as a director include films like Mere Apne, Aandhi, Angoor and Parichay. He also directed a television serial on Mirza Ghalib. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 2004.

In addition, he has won numerous awards at the national level as a director and lyricist. Married to actress Raakhee, Gulzar’s daughter Meghna Gulzar has also taken to directing movies.