By Jaideep Sen
November was a month of celebrations. Salim Saab’s birthday
fell on the 24th
It’s only in the fitness of things that such a
wonderful human being should also be acknowledged for his contributions to the
world of scriptwriting by the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) 2018
with a Lifetime Achievement Award for his outstanding contribution to Indian
cinema in the same month.
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| Arbaaz accepting the IFFI Lifetime Achievement Award on behalf of Salim Khan |
Salim Saab’s innate humanity was evident through his
acceptance speech which was read out by his son who received the award in Goa
on his behalf. Salim Saab, also later tweeted about it, and dedicated the award to his janmabhoomi, Indore, his karmabhoomi Mumbai and the film industry
and his erstwhile writing partner Mr. Javed Akhtar. He mentioned that without Javed
Saab’s contribution in his career, this achievement would not have been possible.
On hearing these words at the event, a lot of present
dignitaries were completely overwhelmed with Salim Saab’s gracious gesture, as
were countless people in Indore who were touched that he had chosen to credit
the city for his success. Indeed, this gesture is special because most do not
even feel the need to share their moment in the spotlight with another human,
never mind their birthplace. And that’s exactly what makes Salim Saab so
special.
While there is no denying that Javed Saab’s participation
has been crucial not just in the making of team Salim-Javed but also in the
historic chapter of contemporary Indian cinema, only a person as magnanimous as
Salim Saab would include another individual in his moment of glory.
Uncannily, Javed Saab used the same adjective -- “magnanimous”
– to describe Salim Saab in their first joint interview after their unfortunate
parting which in my unflinching opinion is the biggest blow and loss to the
Indian film fraternity. Marvels such as Sholay
and Deewar have transcended the boundaries
of states and languages to represent Indian cinema and after the Salim-Javed
era, only a handful of powerful scripts have been able to achieve similar
status.
When the duo was asked about their split Salim Saab very
graciously took the complete blame for it, which left Javed Saab embarrassed
and he said that only a very magnanimous man like Salim Saab could speak and
conduct himself in such a graceful manner.
This is the essence of the persona and commitment of the legend
called Salim Khan Saab. Talking about his commitment reminds me of an anecdote
where on receiving the bound script of Dostana
with “The End” written on its last page, the film’s renowned director, late Mr.
Raj Khosla had remarked that he’d been directing films for the last 25 years and
this was the first time he was seeing a script with “The End” written on it
before commencement of filming.
There is no doubt in my mind that Indian cinema has been
blessed with a personality of Salim Saab’s stature. So, let’s celebrate Salim
Khan!
Jaideep
Sen is a filmmaker and a connoisseur of the art of storytelling.
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