Koi raftaar si raftaar hai iss duniya ki,

Kisi jiddat ko bhi ik pal mein purana kar day

-   Javed Akhtar

Truly said.

Love transcends boundaries, love connects, love nurtures, love breeds love.

And the writings of majestic Javed Akhtar have a balmy effect on your wearied senses. They calm you down. They infuse your spirits with hope and feeling of humaneness.

Guess what? Actor Harshad Arora is someone who loves the words of Akhtar saab.  As the lead in Colors’ Beintehaa, he has really won hearts of millions of his fans.

With a handsome face and a lovable personality, Harshad is truly the chocolate boy and adored by one and all.

For our Irshaad section, Harshad takes a trip down memory lane as he talks about poetry, love and emotions and also Tata Sky’s new service Actve Javed Akhtar.

We feel that life without poetry would be incomplete…your thoughts?

Yes, it’s true. There are emotions which can be expressed only via poetry. 

Do you have interest in poetry and shayari?

Yes I do, but honestly I don’t think I know the art that well to comment on it. It’s a vast and deep genre. 

Have you ever written/recited a poem or a shayari to profess your love for someone?

(Laughs). Not yet, but it certainly is a good idea.

In this day and age – where people have lost interest in poetry and that kind of romance, how do you stay connected to shayari/poetry?

Post Beintehaa, I have developed a strong affinity towards Urdu language.  I use Youtube to listen to soul stirring poems and shayaris. So yes, technology comes as a great help to connect.

Who is your favorite shayar or poet?

I think in recent times, Gulzar and Javed Akhtar’s works are very soulful and heart touching.

Do you know Tata Sky & Javed Akhtar are reviving the essence of poetry and spirituality with Tata Sky’s Actve Javed Akhtar service? Your comments.

Yes, and it is a good move which helps people connect with the art.  Some people still like the old school and love ‘kagaaz’ and ‘kalam’ but for others like us, I think enjoying the art on TV or a phone really comes handy. 

Poetry is understood essentially as a soulful expression. It has been used in the past to express all emotions of life (not just alcohol, love and betrayal, as popularly believed). What do you associate poetry with?

Poems express varied emotions, be it sorrows, happiness and love. For me, poetry is all about feelings.

Javed Akhtar is a magician with the pen. Any favourite song or poem of his you remember/like?

There are so many that I am lost for choices. I think whatever he pens automatically become magical.

To end, kuch irshaad kijiye…

Kitaabain jhankti hain, band almari ke sheeshoon se,
Bhari hasrat se takti hain, maheenon ab mulaqaatain nahi hoti.
Jo shamaain un ki suhbaat main katta karti thein,
Ab aksar guzar jati hain, computer ke pardoon par.

For those who are fans of Urdu Shayari and spiritual dohas, check out ‘Actve Javed Akhtar’, the latest offering from Tata Sky.