Faraz sticks to 'no Bollywood' resolve

NEW DELHI: He holds no ranjish (grudge) against Bollywood, but Ahmed Faraz, one of the living legends of Urdu poetry, simply does not believe in writing for films.

However, the Pakistani poet says he has never stopped any of the Bollywood producers from using his ghazals in their movies.

Writer of immortal ghazals like Ranjish hi Sahi, dil hi dukhane ke liye Aa ... feels true poetry can never be written to suit a particular situation.

For him poetry comes from the core of the heart, which could be composed only at the beck and call of heart and not at the director's instructions.

Even a call from actor and film-maker Raj Kapoor and singer like Lata Mangeshkar could not persuade the Pakistani great to write verses for them. Surprisingly, he says that he never stopped anyone to use his poetry to give it musical form.

His hit ghazals like Ranjishi hi sahi dil hi dukhane ke liye aa and  Ab ke bichre to phir khwaboan mein mile sung by Mehndi Hasan and Karoon na yaad magar by Asha Bhosle still mesmerise the music buffs.

The Urdu poet from Pakistan who was recently here fondly relates how the legendary Raj Kapoor once requested him to write a song for his film, which he politely refused saying he did not write for films. Instead he offered him to pick any of his ghazals.