Overview
Javed Akhtar (born 17 January 1945) is an Indian screenwriter, lyricist, poet and public figure, widely associated with Hindi cinema. Over the course of his career he has received five National Film Awards and sixteen Filmfare Awards. He was conferred the Padma Shri in 1999 and the Padma Bhushan in 2007.
Akhtar first came to prominence as one half of the screenwriting duo Salim–Javed, with Salim Khan. The partnership achieved its breakthrough with Zanjeer (1973) and went on to write several landmark Hindi films, including Deewaar (1975) and Sholay (1975). Their work is often credited with shaping the "angry young man" archetype that became influential in Indian popular cinema. After the duo parted ways in the early 1980s, Akhtar moved into lyric writing, becoming known for verses that combined literary sensibility with social themes.
Beyond cinema, Akhtar has been active as a public intellectual, speaking and writing on subjects such as secularism, freedom of expression, gender equality, human rights and rationalism. He served as a nominated member of the Rajya Sabha from 2010 to 2016, representing the field of arts. During the 2019 Indian general election, he publicly extended support to the Communist Party of India (CPI). In 2020, he became the first Indian to receive the Richard Dawkins Award, recognised for his contributions to literature, film and free thought.
In 2024, Amazon Prime Video released Angry Young Men, a three-part documentary series on the partnership of Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar, examining their creative process, personal association and the lasting influence of their films on Indian cinema. In December 2025, Akhtar took part in a public philosophical debate.
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