Gulzar is many things: an author, a poet, a lyricist, a director, and a screenwriter. Now, the esteemed figure has been bestowed upon with India’s highest literary honour, the Jnanpith Award, which he emphasizes holds a special place for him, as him being recognized in the field of literature is extremely meaningful.

After being selected for the Jnanpith Award, the 89-year-old extended his thanks to his fans and supporters through a video message. Renowned for his poetic excellence in Urdu, Gulzar expressed his gratitude with sincerity, not only acknowledging the honour itself but also appreciating the surprising interest of his audience in Urdu poetry.

He said, “I would like to thank all those people who chose me for the Jnanpith Award and also those people who listen to my poetry and Shayari in the Urdu language,” adding, “I was thinking that maybe it is because of the film and music, people are not aware of listening to poetry and Shayari. But, when the announcement of the Jnanpith Award came, I felt that people were still interested in listening to Urdu poetry and Shayari. I felt so happy.”

As per the selection committee, Swami Rambhadracharya has been honoured with the 58th Jnanpith Award for the year 2023 in Sanskrit, and Gulzar has been recognized for Urdu.

Sampooran Singh Kalra, widely recognized as Gulzar, has crafted numerous memorable and iconic songs in Hindi cinema. Kicking off his career as a lyricist with the 1961 film ‘Kabuliwala,’ he has since, contributed to the lyrics and scripts to numerous movies. Additionally, he has directed several acclaimed feature films, such as ‘Maachis,’ ‘Aandhi,’ ‘Khushboo,’ ‘Parichay’ and ‘Koshish.’

The Jnanpith Award will be an addition to the high accolades he has received throughout his career. He has been honoured with the Sahitya Akademi Award for Urdu in 2002, the Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 2013, the Padma Bhushan in 2004, and at least five National Film Awards for his contributions to cinema and literature.