Angry Young Men: Money lessons from Salim-Javed’s groundbreaking cinematic journey

Salman Khan Films, Excel Films and Tiger Baby Films have hit the jackpot with a three episode show about Salim-Javed and their finest partnerships in Bollywood! The show airs on Amazon Prime Video starting on August 20, 2024.

When today’s reels generation sits down to watch Sholay that has a 204 minute runtime (198 minutes theatrical release), you wonder how many of them will understand how meme worthy every line from the film is, how the silence between Jai and Radha is different from the silence among the villagers when they see Ahmad’s dead body and the Imam asks, ‘Itna sannata kyon hai bhai?!’

And Sholay is just one of the 24 amazing films that the writer duo Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar have written together. What money lessons could this lovely, insightful documentary bring for you?

The rules of partnership

Javed Akhtar says that Salim Sahab would bring a story and I would write the dialogues and we would fine tune everything. There was no set rule about who would do what, but a sense of mutual respect would make the partnership work.

What Salim-Javed had was nothing short of a miracle. A give and take of ideas and the crazy single-mindedness about delivering the most amazing stories. As an investor, you too need a trustworthy partner who will help you make the most of your money. Yes! Your investment planner and you should be able to work out a system where you and they work on making the most of all the different investment opportunities.

Hunger and poverty are great teachers

Both Salim and Javed left their homes to make something of their lives, when they were as young as 15. Javed Akhtar admits that he slept in costume storage rooms, in parks, railway stations because he did not have a place to stay. He would often realise that he had not eaten for two days.

He says that when he travels today, he gets to stay in these big suites with large beds and eat fancy foods. But there is a niggly thought in his head that he is an imposter to this lifestyle. Nothing will make him forget the days when he travelled by trains which were so crowded that there was no place to rest his shoulder.

It’s true, hunger teaches us the value of food. Just as we learn from our mistakes when we invest poorly. But he knows that he was meant to succeed, and would never give up. That’s what we should believe too, dear investor. The ups and downs of the market are natural, but if we shut shop and go home, then you won’t be worthy of a win.

Take credit where credit’s due

You will smile when you hear about how Salim Khan speaks with righteous outrage about never being acknowledged for the story and the dialogues of films. Before ‘Deewar’ was released, they paid a painter who stencilled ‘Written by Salim-Javed’ on every single poster of the film. Writers were meant to be humble and not ask for credit. But as Salim Khan says, ‘If the songwriter who writes a song on a page gets credit, why should the writers, who wrote every dialogue, every plot twist and keeps the audience glued for more than two hours not even get a mention?

At one point they even asked for one lakh rupees more than the highest paid actor in the film. Perhaps it was arrogance, or that they were purely confident that they were delivering quality work. In your investment life, do take credit when you manage to find a financial instrument that delivers. And humility is overrated. Take a bow if you are a star!

Pay those who work for you

Salim Khan recalls how someone made him wait outside their office for over nine hours and then asked him to come back again another day. Salim Khan says that on his way back home he vowed that he would never ever treat another human being in the same fashion. He remarks that the holy books say that a worker should be paid for his efforts even before the sweat on their body dries. And that’s how it should be.

Am sure, dear investor, you too have people working for you, whether at your office or in your home. Everyone works hard for the money. And it is right that you too treat them with respect and pay them for services rendered. This will encourage your people to work harder and you will of course earn brownie points in the big book of accounts up there in the sky!

The show is beautifully woven with personal accounts from family members and colleagues and critics from the industry. This personal account of a legendary friendship and partnership will make you smile so many times, you will call your best bud just to say hello because, Dostana! Or hug your mum because, ‘Mere paas Ma hai!’

Manisha Lakhe is a poet, film critic, traveller, founder of Caferati — an online writer’s forum, hosts Mumbai’s oldest open mic, and teaches advertising, films and communication. She can be reached on Twitter at @manishalakhe.