Farhan Akhtar’s mother, Honey Irani, kickstarted her career in films as a child artist and later transitioned to screenwriting, carving a niche for herself. She played a major role in writing the script of Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (DDLJ); however, she was not credited. This resulted in her fallout with Yash Chopra, after which they never collaborated. In a chat during mid-day’s Sit with Hitlist, Farhan opens up about the incident and states everyone has moved on. He also opens up about Javed Akhtar facing backlash when he demanded royalties for lyricists and music composers.
Farhan Akhtar on bond with Yash Chopra’s family
Reflecting on the instance, he shares, “It was heartbreaking for all concerned. The relationship that my mom shared, we shared with Yash Chopra; his wife, Pamela Chopra, was like one family. For me, Uday and Adi are still my brothers, and I am glad that all of them are behind us. Things happen between people who love each other, and at some point, you have to move on by forgiving and forgetting. So I am glad that happened because they are important people in all our lives. What happened was unfortunate; now the silver lining is it’s all behind us, and everyone has moved on graciously.”
“Just from the fact that my parents were writers, both of them got respect when they were writing. My dad and Salim Khan were on another level. Zoya and I come from that background of wanting to write our own scripts and pitching, so we know it`s not an easy thing.”
Farhan also reflected on his bond with his mother, Honey Irani, and recalled a hilarious instance when she yelled at one of their relatives. He remembers, “She speaks her mind and cannot keep a straight face if anything funny happens. There was this one time, years ago, when we were kids, and there used to be some guy delivering meat to the house. Mom got irritated because he was not selling the right one. She told the cook to call him as she wanted to talk to him.”
He quips, “In the afternoon, my mom came, and a person was sitting down, and mom started yelling at him. Suddenly, my dad comes and asks her, after which he reveals he is his mama. She has many such episodes when she cannot hold back.”
Farhan on Javed Akhtar’s plea for royalty
Javed Akhtar played a key role in passing the Copyright (Amendment) Act, 2012, in India to secure lifelong royalties for creators like lyricists and music composers. He faced significant opposition from major production houses and filmmakers, including Yash Chopra and Mahesh Bhatt, who feared the change would negatively impact their businesses.
Reflecting on the changing situation for musicians in India, the actor remarks, “They were not really getting their share. People in the West retired 30–40 years ago; they are living off royalties. We’ve had people who had 500 hit songs that they wrote or composed and died in abject poverty; it`s a shame. Considering our music is one of the biggest reminders of our past, we remember films and actors because of it. For them not to get a share of their creation was terribly wrong in the system, and I am happy that my dad fought as hard as he could, and people are now getting deserved royalties.”
Talking about producers who opposed it, the actor says, “He had his own share of run-ins with people, but it was very myopic of them. I don’t think they understood what he had done.”