Javed Akhtar arrived in Mumbai with just 27 paisa in his pocket: ‘Sometimes I had food, sometimes I didn’t’

While today Javed Akhtar is a renowned lyricist-screenplay writer in Bollywood, with many films such as Sholay, Deewar, and Zanjeer to his credit, he once struggled for over six years. In an interview with Let's Talk with Devna G, the veteran lyricist admitted he once suffered starvation and had no idea if he would ever succeed. He also revealed he relied on ghostwriting contracts for a long time.

Akhtar revealed how he arrived in Mumbai at age 19 in 1964, with just 27 naya paisa in his pocket. He wanted to work with Raj Kapoor, but he didn't even see RK Studio for at least five years after he arrived in Mumbai.

With no significant opportunity coming his way, Javed accepted every writing assignment he could get, even taking on ghostwriting projects for films to make ends meet.


At times, he was hired to anonymously write a handful of scenes for comedians appearing in movies. He recalled being paid just Rs 100 per scene, so completing 10 scenes earned him only Rs 1,000. Those small assignments became his means of survival during an extremely difficult phase of his life. He also acknowledged the support of friends who helped him through those years and ensured that he did not have to face his struggles entirely alone.

According to Javed, his actual breakthrough did not arrive until January 1970.

He described the six years leading up to that point as an uncertain and unpredictable period. His circumstances kept changing, with times when he had a place to stay followed by periods when he had nowhere to go. Even getting enough food was sometimes a challenge. Despite the hardships and uncertainty, he continued moving forward because he had no alternative plan to fall back on.

“Sometimes I had shelter, sometimes I didn’t. Sometimes I could get food; sometimes I could not. I had no idea where I would get lunch or dinner from, or whether I would get anything at all. Quite often, I didn’t,” he revealed.