Decoding the downfall of ‘Angry Young Men’ Salim-Javed

With films such as ‘Zanjeer,’ ‘Deewar,’ ‘Sholay,’ ‘Seeta Aur Geeta,’ and over a dozen more, Salim-Javed had made an irreplaceable impact on Indian cinema. Directors and producers wanted to work with them. Labeled as ‘brats’ back then, they became a screenwriter duo that was drawing a bigger paycheck than the leading stars. However, after working together for about 12 years, they took everyone by surprise when they announced their split without giving a reason. To date, there have been many theories behind their infamous split.

Amazon Prime Video’s latest release, ‘Angry Young Men,’ a three-part documentary series made on the iconic duo, gives glimpses into what actually led to their parting. Though many have claimed that it was possibly the ego that drifted them away, the duo believes that it was their success that might have led to it.

Salim-Javed delivered 10 blockbuster hits in a row. After the successes of ‘Deewar’ and ‘Sholay’ in 1975, their next release, ‘Aakhri Daan’ was a flop. ‘Iman Dharam,’ which has a stellar ensemble cast comprising Amitabh Bachchan, Sanjeev Kumar, Dharmendra, Rakhe, and others, also shockingly failed to perform, giving a major setback to them. However, they bounced back with ‘Don’ and ‘Trishul.’

“One thing that perhaps, I must say in all honesty, is that Salim-Javed did not realize the value of goodwill. It was a mistake we made. When they get a chance, the world will punish you,” said Javed Akhtar, while speaking on the downfall of Salim-Javed.

“We had given two super duper hit films—'Don'' and ‘Trishul.’ Both of them were Golden Jubilee films. And then there was no line of producers standing at our doors,” Javed added. 

Salim Khan also spoke about how success can change a person. “Success has destroyed more people than failure has. It’s a fact. Success can go to your head. And many times you start making wrong decisions. You start showing attitude. You have to control that. You have to see that it doesn’t happen to you.”

But the main reason, per Javed, was “that the spring of our careers was drying up. Fatigue was showing in our work too. No doubt about that.” They decided to part ways impeccably.

The duo never gave a reason behind their split but announced their decision. “Yes, we parted ways, but we did it in a very civilized way. Normally what happens when people part ways, they throw mud at each other, and talk ill. We sometimes argued, We’re not perfect, but no one is. I’d give my side of the story, and so would he. We just never talked about our parting. Even if someone asked why or how we parted, we said we didn’t know. We don’t like to talk about it. We only speak about the good times we had,” said Salim while talking about why they chose not to discuss their split openly.

Javed’s filmmaker-son Farhan Akhtar also went on to add how their split had a slight impact on the dynamics of their families.