The odd couple:Javed-Himesh

The odd couple

Javed Akhtar and Himesh Reshammiya team up for Namaste London

Kunal M Shah

In what comes across as an improbable combination, popular singer Himesh Reshammiya and poet-lyricist Javed Akhtar are going to team up soon. Akhtar is penning the lyrics for a soundtrack composed by Reshammiya.

The film that will see the merging of the popular with the intense, is Vipul Amrutlal Shah's forthcoming project Namaste London.

Talking about this unusual jugalbandi, Reshammiya says, "Javedsaab is an icon, and has a great body of work. I always dreamt of composing songs written by him."

There will be nine songs in all. Reshammiya says, "Each song will accentuate the different facets of love and romance. I will sing three songs myself and I hope to silence my detractors who complain that my music is becoming repetitive."

Javed Akhtar is looking forward to it as well. He says, "Himesh is a phenomenon. When we first met, he held my hand and said, 'Javedsaab, I want your poetry'. That one statement did the trick."

Akhtar feels that he qualifies to be in the popular category too. "I've always written for commercial films and I'm very proud of it. The only thing I refuse to do is write vulgar lyrics or lines that are grammatically incorrect," he says.

• Javedsaab is an icon and has a great body of work. I always dreamt of composing songs written by him – Himesh Reshammiya