Gulzar's birthday: Papon dedicates new song to legendary lyricist as he turns 88; Watch

Legendary lyricist Gulzar, who changed the face of Hindi cinema with his iconic tracks like Tujhse Naraz Nahi Zindagi, Tere Bina Zindagi Se Koi and more, turned 88 today, August 18. The artist, whose career spans more than 7 decades has been honoured with an Academy Award, a Grammy as well as multiple National Film Awards for his work.

On this birthday, Gulzar received a special surprise from singer Papon, who launched a new track Kahani Koyi as a tribute to the veteran. The track has been composed, sung and produced by Papon, while its lyrics have been penned by Gulzar himself. Apart from releasing the video, Papon also wrote a heartfelt note celebrating Gulzar's legacy.

Papon dedicates new song to legendary lyricist Gulzar as he turns 88

Taking to his Twitter handle on Thursday, August 18, Papon shared the link to Kahani Koyi and wrote, "Presenting a song that is very close to my heart & dedicated to the person who means so much to everyone across generations the one & only ‘Gulzar Saab’ Happy birthday Gulzar Saab thank you for blessing us with your words Good health and peace always." Take a look. 

In a statement, as per Mid-day, Papon mentioned it was a 'delight' to lend music to the words of Gulzar. Calling Gulzar a 'living legend', the singer shed light on his illustrious journey that has inspired 'many veterans in India'. "I wish him lots of love on his birthday. May we be so blessed as to revel in his brilliance for a lifetime. I can’t wait to know what the listeners think of this song," Papon concluded. 

Gulzar began working around 1963 and has lent lyrics to many notable films like Kaminey, Raavan, Bunty Aur Babli, Dil Se.., Slumdog Millionaire, Omkara and more. He has also directed films like Aandhi and Mausam as well as the TV series Mirza Ghalib. 

(IMAGE: INSTAGRAM/ @PAPONMUSIC)