‘Marriage is useless’, Javed Akhtar called marriage ‘moss and filth’, said – ruined tradition of centuries

Veteran writer-lyricist Javed Akhtar is married to Shabana Azmi and often talks about marriage. he/she recently talked about his/her marriage with Shabana and said that he/she does not give much importance to the institution of marriage. In an interview, Javed said that mutual respect is the foundation of any relationship. he/she described marriage as an ancient tradition that has accumulated ‘moss and dirt’ over the centuries. Javed Akhtar revealed that he/she and Shabana are more friends than a traditional married couple. Speaking on Barkha Dutt’s Mojo story, he/she said, ‘Actually, we barely got married. We are friends. My only qualification for a good marriage is: are you friends or not? Marriage is a useless job. It’s an age-old tradition, it’s a stone that has been rolled down the mountains for centuries and as it was coming down the hill, it had collected a lot of moss, a lot of trash and dirt.’

What did Javed Akhtar say on marriage?

Giving his/her views on marriage, Javed said that it is not about labels like ‘husband’ and ‘wife’. Instead, it’s about becoming good friends who respect and understand each other. The words ‘wife’ and ‘husband’ have many different meanings. just forget about it. How can two people, no matter their gender, live happily together? It needs mutual respect, it needs mutual consideration, it needs giving space to each other.

Talk about partnership in relationships

Javed Akhtar shared that in a relationship, both of them should understand that each has their own ambitions and dreams and both have equal rights to move forward. he/she further said, ‘We have to understand that the other person is a human being, who has his/her own ambitions and dreams. he/she has as much right to his/her ambitions as I do to mine. That is all. This is not rocket science. It’s actually quite simple. You can only live happily together if both of you are happy.’

‘The wife is not a slave’

he/she said, ‘One thing is certain, love without respect is a betrayal. Let me tell you, an independent woman with her own ambitions, her own business, her own opinions, everything. Obviously, a person who is living with you is not your slave, that will be inconvenient but you have to understand that they are not a slave.’