Legendary writer-duo Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar, more popularly known as Salim-Javed, in the 1970s, revolutionized Indian cinema by reinventing the Bollywood formula
Angry Young Men is a docuseries on Bollywood's superhit writer duo Salim-Javed
Angry Young Men, a three-part docuseries on Salim-Javed, the greatest writer duo in Bollywood, is now streaming on Prime Video, and it is so gobsmackingly good… especially if you are fond of the '70s and '80s Hindi cinema (or want to know all about it). We give you 9 reasons why you shouldn’t miss watching Angry Young Men. Watch it:
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1. To know the first writer superstars of Hindi cinema Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar. Like the jodi had the audacity of asking one lakh rupees more than the biggest star of the time. It was unheard of then and it is unfathomable to date. As Karan Johar explains- imagine you want one crore rupees more than Salman Khan.
2. To know how the expression Angry Young Man came about. Yeah, yeah, you know all about the 70s’ anxious India and how there was a palpable anger against the system and all that. Well, that has been the case in the history of mankind and yet Salim-Javed created something magical on screen.
3. To know what made Amitabh Bachchan one of the greatest icons of Indian cinema. The man, the magic, the macho hero was quite literally built by Salim Javed. Watching some of those shots from iconic movies like Sholay, Deewar, Trishul and Don, gives you goosebumps. They say Amitabh Bachchan is the sexiest runner on the screen. You see the shots of him running in Don and you understand what it means. His eyes spew anger in Trishul, in Deewar. You instantly realise why the man commands so much respect as an actor across generations.
4. To know the power of imagination of a writer (yes, we know Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar were two, but they amalgamated into one). They say a great film is the vision of its director but as you watch Angry Young Men, you realise how Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar offered the director on a platter. For instance, the scene in Sholay where Gabbar Singh cuts off Thakur’s hands, is described by Salim Khan and you realise it was not just the director Ramesh Sippy’s genius that shook you watching it.
5. To know what the power of a dialogue in a movie is. Javed Akhtar saab is credited for so many iconic lines that have resonated in a film buff’s ears all this time. Main aaj bhi fenke hue sikke nahi uthata, Yeh haath mujhe de de Thakur, Aaj mere paas sab kuchh hai…bangla, gaadi, naukar chaakar…Why, even the line that we use in our everyday lives tum jis school mein padhte ho, hum wahan ke headmaster hain comes from a non-descript film like Haath ki Safaai. You didn’t know that, right? Neither did we. It is interesting to know how Polydor, who held Sholay’s music and audio track rights, decided to release Sholay dialogues’ LP (long playing vinyl record) and how that went on to play a huge part into the film’s success.
6. To know how the geniuses make even the greatest of their works look SO easy. For instance, you are blown to bits when you are told that Deewar was written in JUST 18 days. Imagine what is regarded as the perfect screenplay was written in such a short time. And Javed Akhtar says it so casually. It’s like watching Rohit Sharma pull a short delivery effortlessly or Virat Kohli unleashes one of his glorious cover drives and wondering how can they do it.
7. To understand why struggle plays an important part in any person’s success. As Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar talk about their early days, you see how their life, their pent-up emotions or even their pride mirrored into their heroes. You realise why mother plays a vital role in Vijay’s both avatars in Deewar and Trishul. And you, too, shed a tear with Salim Khan as he narrates a painful memory from his childhood.
8. To understand how too much success can destroy you. When Zoya Akhtar says the pair wrote 24 films together and 22 of them were hits, you are awestruck. And when Salman Khan remembers how his father, who used to get annoyed by the constantly ringing phone, one day wondered why it was not ringing any longer and asked him to check if the line had gone dead. After delivering two of the biggest hits in a year, Salim-Javed thought the producers were going to queue up to sign them and yet no one was ready because the industry thought they had become cocky.
9. And finally, watch it to know why they suddenly stopped working together one fine day (or a sad day for movie lovers). There is no definitive answer (sorry for the spoiler), but Angry Young Men gives you enough to derive your own conclusions. It’s tragically beautiful to watch Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar pose together for concluding shots. Decades after their split, the warmth is still seen, abd also the hesitancy.
You want more? Okay, do not miss the title animation. There’s one shot of late Amjad Khan’s swagger at the premiere of Sholay which is blink and miss, but don’t miss it.
Watch it. Because it is worth your time.
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