Did you know? Javed Akhtar had days when he didn’t have food to eat

Javed Akhtar got emotional as he reflected on the tough times he faced when he was struggling in the film industry

Javed Akhtar got emotional as he remembered the tough times he faced when he was struggling in the film industry. He mentioned how hunger can make a person feel like an animal, blurring the lines between humanity and survival.

He reflects on the extravagant meals he enjoys now and wonders how precious they would have been back when he went days without eating.

Did you know? Javed Akhtar spent days without food

During an interview with Barkha Dutt for Mojo Story, Javed was questioned about his complex relationship with his father and whether he recalls the events leading up to him being pushed onto the streets. “I remember the minutest detail,”

He added, “I feel very thankful for life, instead of getting sad about it, or feeling victimised or persecuted, I feel very thankful to life.”

“So often, in the mornings… I live by the sea, I can only see the ocean from my windows. I sit there, and they bring breakfast on a trolley. I feel like maybe I’m a part of some drama, that all this doesn’t belong to me. And I feel so thankful to life. Look! I have so much food, I can eat. I sit at my dining table many times, when I finish eating, I see so much food is still there. And I feel if I could’ve gotten just one dish, that daal, or that sabzi, that night when I was so hungry, how much I would have enjoyed it.” He continued.

The veteran writer was teared up remembering his past. “On one hand, I do remember those tough days, but on the other hand, I feel extremely thankful, because there must be crores and crores of people who suffered the way I suffered, but they were not rewarded or compensated.” 

When he was asked if there were days when he didn’t have food to eat, he stated, “Oh, what a question. Many times.” 

Talking about what he would do in these moments, he said, "When you don’t have anything to eat, you don’t do anything. Actually, it’s very interesting. Suppose you haven’t eaten anything since morning, and you go to somebody’s house, and they’re sitting at the dining table, and they say, ‘Aaiye khana kha lijiye (Come, eat with us)’, and spontaneously many times it has happened, I’ve said, ‘Nahi, kha ke aaya hoon (No, I just ate)’. If they came to know that I was dying of starvation, that would be very shameful.”

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