Javed Akhtar Recalls 'Trauma' Of 'Dying Of Starvation' On Streets: 'No Difference Between Human And Dog'

Javed Akhtar is one of the most prominent names in Bollywood today. However, his life has not been a rosy tale of fame and success. When he was younger, he was once forced out on the streets and even his father refused to help him. He recently recalled nearly dying out of starvation and said that he feels grateful for what he has now.

Speaking to Barkha Dutt, Javed Akhtar said, “So often, in the mornings… I live by the sea, I can only see the ocean from my windows. I sit there, and they bring breakfast on a trolley. I feel like maybe I’m a part of some drama, that all this doesn’t belong to me. And I feel so thankful to life. Look! I have so much food, I can eat. I sit at my dining table many times, and when I finish eating, I see so much food is still there. And I feel if I could’ve gotten just one dish, that daal, or that sabzi, that night when I was so hungry, how much I would have enjoyed it.”

“On one hand, I do remember those tough days, but on the other hand, I feel extremely thankful, because there must be crores and crores of people who suffered the way I suffered, but they were not rewarded or compensated,” he said. When asked if there were days when he didn’t have food to eat, he said, “Oh, what a question. Many times.”

Javed said, “When you don’t have anything to eat, you don’t do anything. Actually, it’s very interesting. Suppose you haven’t eaten anything since morning, and you go to somebody’s house, and they’re sitting at the dining table, and they say, ‘Aaiye khana kha lijiye (Come, eat with us)’, and spontaneously many times it has happened, I’ve said, ‘Nahi, kha ke aaya hoon (No, I just ate)’. If they came to know that I was dying of starvation, that would be very shameful.”

“There are two-three moments which have traumatised me very badly; that trauma has remained with me. To be hungry for two days, three days, it’s traumatic. On the third day, there is no difference between a human being and a dog. All your sense of dignity, your self-respect, it becomes so vague. The only thing that you know is that you’re hungry,” he added.