Javed Siddiqui


Javed Siddiqi is a Hindi and Urdu screenwriter, dialogue writer and playwright from India. He has written over 50 storylines, screenplays and dialogues.
During his career, Siddiqui has collaborated with some of India's most prominent filmmakers, from independent directors like Satyajit Ray and Shyam Benegal to commercial directors like Yash Chopra and Subhash Ghai. He has become an integral part of Indian cinema, in both commercial and art cinema fields.
Siddiqui has won two Filmfare Awards, two Star Screen Awards and one BFJA Award.
Recently, he announced his association with where he would review artists and their artwork..

Cinema and television

After having graduated in Urdu Literature from Rampur, Javed Siddiqui moved to Bombay in 1959, where he worked as a professional journalist for various Urdu dailies like Khilafat Daily and Inquilaab. Soon after that, he went on to lead his own newspaper, Urdu reporter.
He started his career as a dialogue writer in Satyajit Ray's Shatranj Ke Khiladi in 1977.
Since then, he has been highly regarded for his works in different genres of film making, including art films of parallel cinema, like Umrao Jaan, Mammo, Fiza, Zubeidaa and Tehzeeb; as well as commercial hits, such as Baazigar, Darr, Yeh Dillagi, Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, Raja Hindustani, Pardes, Chori Chori Chupke Chupke and Koi... Mil Gaya.
He has also written scripts for serials like Shyam Benegal's Bharat Ek Khoj, Ramesh Sippy's Kismet, Yash Chopra's Waqt and others.

Theatre

Siddiqui has seen success in the theatre field as well. From serving IPTA as a National Vice-President, he later contributed in the origin and functioning of the Marathi IPTA as well, and has been associated with it as a national member.
His play Tumhari Amrita, based on A R Gurney's classic American play Love Letters, with only two actors reading out letters to each other, became a critical success. Since its debut in 1993, the play has been performed all over the world, including a special performance at the United Nations, the first Indian play to do so.
This was followed by Saalgirah, starring actress Kirron Kher, a play dealing with the complexity of divorce in modern urban life.
Siddiqui has successfully ventured into various domains, from Bertolt Brecht to more contemporary themes in his adaptations. He has adapted Bertolt Brecht's play Puntilla and several of his other works. His play Andhe Choohe based on Agatha Christie's Mousetrap, is one of the world's longest running dramas. In the words of critic Vijay Nair, "Javed Siddiqi's lines are as poignant as ever. They leap out of the letters as little gems. At times they plead with the incoherence of hurts long stifled. At times they flare up like little flames scorching the audience. At times they soothe like fresh raindrops after a scorching summer. But at all times they have a life of their own and make their presence felt like an invisible third character on stage." His play 1857: Ek Safarnama set in Indian Rebellion of 1857 was also stage at Purana Qila, Delhi ramparts by Nadira Babbar and National School of Drama Repertory company, in 2008.
Over the years he has written numerous plays, including Hamesha, Begum Jaan, Aap Ki Soniya and Kacche Lamhe.

Personal life

He belongs to the family of great freedom fighters, Mohammad Ali Jouhar and his brother Maulana Shaukat Ali well known as the Ali brothers. His great grandfather Hafiz Ahmed Ali Shauq was a historian and had written a number of books, he was the first librarian of Shahi Qutub Khana now known as Raza Library. His father Shujat Ali, had served in the same library as an assistant librarian for a long time.
His early education was in Rampur’s Hamid High School and Jaame-ul-uloom, Furqaniah. He passed his high school in English in Aligarh Muslim University.
At a very early age of 17 he migrated to Bombay, now Mumbai and under the able guidance of his uncle Maulana Zahid Shaukat Ali started his career as a journalist in his Urdu Newspaper ‘Khilafat Daily’; he then proceeded to work in newspapers like ‘Inquilaab’ and ‘Hindustan’ and soon started his own newspaper called the ‘Urdu Reporter’
He started his career in films as a Dialogue writer and Special Assistant Director to Mr Satyajit Ray in ‘Shatranj Ke Khiladi’ & he also assisted James Ivory as his chief Assistant Director
Siddiqui has four children: Murad, Lubna, Sameer and Zeba. Lubna Salim, and Sameer Siddiqui are both involved in the film and theatre arena. Lubna is a stage actor-singer, and married to theatre and television director Salim Arif. Murad has a production company and is a Director of many of TV Programs, while Sameer has followed in his father's footsteps, and writes for Hindi films and TV soaps.

Urdu literature

In 2012, Javed Siddiqui has written a book of pen sketches named "Roshandan". The book was published from Delhi and later on it was republished from AJJ, Karachi. A comprehensive review on the book was written by Karachi based writer and researcher on Ibne Safi, Rashid Ashraf which was published in Karachi renowned Urdu magazine Quarterly Ijra in 2012.
Javed Siddiqui started the second part of Roshandan with the first pensketch on Satya Jeet Rey which was published in Mumbai's literary magazine Naya Warq and later on in Ajj, Karachi, March 2013.

Awards

Film writer