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Meet the insurance agent who writes song lyrics
By Screen Weekly, June 28, 2007 - 09:26 IST
| The single characteristic that distinguished our master-lyricists from most word-spinners of today is that intangible 'X' factor, a quality that connotes the perfect mix of elegant language, new thought, fresh phrases, simplicity and depth and a perfect fit with musical metres and phonetics. Sayeed Quadri has this 'X' factor in abundance, and his songs directly connect with the listeners' hearts. The 40-plus Sayeedbhai seems reserved but comes across as humble and warm. He may be attired in jeans and shirts, but it is his work that separates this man from the boys, as proved by his cream in Jism, Saaya, Murder, Zeher, Life In A…Metro and now The Train, Anwar and Awarapan. Sayeed talks about his career in a candid chat with Screen. Excerpts. You began with the stunning lyrics of Jism-'Awarapan banjarapan', 'Shikayat hai' and 'Mere khwabon ka har ek naqsh' in 2003, but it is said that you had come down to Mumbai in the 1980s. What had happened then? That is true. In the '80s, I had come down to Mumbai from Jodhpur. I was straight out of college. I went straight to Mahesh Bhattsaab because I instinctively felt that he had a sense of poetry. Bhattsaab, though enocuraging, did not have his own banner at that time. Another person who was encouraging was Anu Malik, but at that point he could not help me. I did meet other music directors but nothing happened, and frankly I did not have the guts to meet the senior top names like Laxmikant-Pyarelal, Kalyanji-Anandji and R.D.Burman because I was told that getting breaks with them was very difficult as they had their own teams. Maybe I should have done so, but in retrospect I simply think that it was in my naseeb not to reach anywhere then. So you went back home without doing any song? No, I did get a small break with music director Kuldip Singhji in a small film called Dhat Teri Ki. I wrote three songs, one of which, 'Iss waqt paaon mein kaanta koi chubh jaaye' was sung by Asha (Bhosle)ji with Ashok Khosla, the well-known ghazal singer. The late composer Jaidevji liked my poetry and I was signed for his Shagun, but the film was not completed. I guess it was kismat, as I said. From there to 2002 was almost two decades. Were you in touch with poetry all along? Likhna to meri fitrat hai. Even in my college days I would participate in radio and television shows, in mushairas and publish my poems in newspapers. I had got married, had two daughters and a son and became an insurance agent, which I continue to be even today. But this phase and all the pain and rejection that I felt before I quietly left Mumbai for Jodhpur has probably added to my poetry. My verse is a lot about moments in my life. In that respect I share common ground with Sahir Ludhianvisaab, who is my idol. In fact, Sahirsaab once wrote something from his heart that applies a lot to my life: 'Duniya ne tajurbaat-o-hawadishq ke shakla mein/Jo kuchh mujhe diya woh lauta rahaa hoon main', which means that I as a poet am only returning to the world what it has given me. So all along, I would keep writing my shaayari in my diary and storing it. 'Diary' and shaayari are rhyming words that were used by Gulzar in a song in Jaan-E-Mann.How comfortable would you be with English words in songs, as is the trend today? I have no issues with this if the situation and characters demand it. Kar lenge.(Smiles) One standout quality of your lyrics is the perfect fit of metre and phonetics. How comfortable are you about writing to a tune, especially when your lyrics have never been inelegant? I am perfectly comfortable writing to a tune because by the grace of God I find it very easy to do so. In fact, I try not to use my poetry in songs and prefer to write according to the story, situation and character. In fact, except for 'Awarapan' (Jism) and 'Zindagi iss tarah se' (Murder), all my songs have written after the tune was composed. Another tradition in this industry is writing songs at a sitting. How comfortable are you at this? There are certain things that I will not do, and this is one of them. I have this clear-cut understanding with my producers, directors and composers: I will not provide words there and then! I attend the sittings and the discussions and then take the CD on which the music director has recorded the approved tune. I then sit alone and listen. When my song is ready - very often I give choices as well - I inform them by reciting on the 'phone or meeting them. You have worked with Anu Malik, M.M.Kreem, Pritam and Mithoon. What are the individual qualities that you have liked about them? All I can say is that they all have their own distinct colour. I got to learn a lot from each of them, which is good for me because I am getting better. Kreemsaab and Pritam are not very strong in Hindi but ensure that they know the exact meaning of what I have written - Kreemsaab even writes the meaning in his own language. Mithoon comes from a musical family and is very open. Anuji is very relaxed and cool and it is a pleasure working with him. I am very lucky that I have had a great rapport with each of them. You have had a consistent record, with terrific highs even after Jism in Saaya, Paap, Zeher, Kalyug, Fareb, Gangster, Woh Lamhe..., Anwar and now Life In A...Metro and The Train. But while your songs are chartbusters and also appreciated, your name is hardly known. Kya kare? (Smiles) I have always been low-profile. Maybe I should change that. But I have never asked for work. I owe a huge debt to Bhattsaab, who is like an elder brother. I am happy that I am getting a lot of outside films as well, though I admit that most of my films so far have come through Bhattsaab's associates who began working outside. Right now, I am working with Ananth Narayan Mahadevan, Raju Khan and T-Series, none of whom have their roots in Vishesh Films. It is generally said that good lyricists have their base in a combination of life's experiences and imbibing classic literature and epics, whereas the superficial pen-pushers do a recycle of the hits of the master-lyricists. Since your work has strong substance with simplicity, what has been your creative nucleus? I have never read much of the great sources of literature and I am sure you will admit that none of my songs have any elements borrowed from a particular lyricist. I have been inspired by life and this world, and probably refined by my experiences. I think that in my own small way I have revived poetry. I try to see that my thoughts and concepts are fresh, that the language is simple even if the thought is quite deep. Also the thought should not be just new but also bada (substantial). I try to see that everyone from the man who dines at the 5-star hotel to the guy who drives an autorickshaw can understand the meaning and the sub-layer. The right word at the right juncture can make one sense the meaning of some term or phrase that you have never heard before and thus enrich your language. But the words should not be so complicated that every time one hears a song one has to rush to a dictionary or a language specialist to even understand what I have written! I also try to lay stress on the sound of the words that I use. Bhattsaab, in print, has stated that I have proved that shaayari is not for the 35-plus age group but also for young people. I look at human emotions and relationships and try and portray them with simplicity. With all these setbacks and your creative fount being from life's barbs, do you think that you will be good at writing light songs? I am sure that I can. I am learning every day and it is not as if Life has been bad. My children are doing fine, I have a secure job, I am happy that my film innings is also shaping well. I have a good grasp of the technicalities. I have great faith in the Almighty, which inspired me to write of my most-appreciated songs, 'Har taraf har jagah har kahin pe hai haan ussika noor/ Roshni ka koi dariyaa to hai haan kahin pe zaroor' in Saaya. This is a devotional song that transcends religions - you can call it a Hindu devotional, a Catholic one as the sequence was shown in church, or even about Allah. And I must mention that Bhool Bhulaiyan is a comedy directed by Priyadarshanji. You have also rewritten a lot of songs with original lyrics by Pakistani poets. Yes. I find writing to tunes easy as I said, and since the Bhatts like their songs, it is important that the words must fit the film's context. In fact 'Woh lamhe' (Zeher) was the song that introduced me to Mithoon, who remixed the original tune. |
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