Lyricist, poet and director Gulzar has taken on yet another role for Kill Dil. The veteran will lend his voice for the song Sweeta. But it wasn’t his idea, he confesses. “It was director Shaad’s decision to use my voice. The director and music director wanted an ad-lib narration, so I added the couplets so they don’t seem out of place.”
A disciplined artiste, Gulzar insists on having a bound script in hand before he starts work. “Since I am a director, I understand the medium. It is important to know the genre and each character before you move forward. I like the fact that Shaad has every detail of the script fleshed out in advance. I like the energy of his characters. In Bunty aur Babli for instance, if the characters sold the Taj Mahal to another character, they also sold it to the audience,” he says.
But it’s not like he’s not up for improvisations. “I have worked with Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy and they are so spontaneous! With Shankar, whatever line you give him, he improves it with his tunes and you get swayed. Sometimes I have to change the lyrics to suit the tune. A songwriter is like any other technician in the film. Just like an actor, a songwriter may have to go in for multiple takes as well.”
He adds, “My songs are inspired by the script. They are not independent poems. They are deeply connected with the characters and situations. The more complex the script, the bigger the challenge it is for me.”
