‘Animal’ fame lyricist Raj Shekhar says he hasn’t been credited for 30 songs

Mumbai, Feb 16 (PTI) Noted lyricist Raj Shekhar, known for chartbuster songs in films such as “Animal” and “Tanu Weds Manu”, says out of the 100-odd songs he has penned over the years, he hasn’t been credited for nearly 30 of them.

The lyricist, who has penned songs like “Pehle Bhi Main” from “Animal”, “Ishq Hai” from “Mismatched 3”, “Jaane De” from “Qarib Qarib Singlle” and “Bhasad Macha” from “Deva”, said it’s important for the film industry to come together and safeguard credit of the writers.

“We’re in the transition phase as a society we’re making mistakes but we’re slowly finding out where. Out of 100, 28-30 songs of mine are not credited to me.

“That’s just me, but what about others who can’t speak for their due credit? I urge the audience to find out the name of the lyricist if they like a song. We write with passion and hard work,” Shekhar said during the session ‘Words That Sing’ at the 7th edition of the Indian Screenwriters Conference (ISC), hosted by the Screenwriters Association of India (SWA).

The lyricist also pointed out that there is a dire need to alter the collaborative process between a director and lyricist.

“There is a gap between the screenwriter and the lyricist. There were plenty of times when I got to know tunes on WhatsApp without knowing the space it was coming from. The creative collaboration with director and writer, as it was in the times of Raj Kapoor and Shailendra, feels missing now,” he added.

At the session, moderated by screenwriter Hussain Haidry, Shekhar was joined by filmmaker-lyricist duo Siddharth Singh and Garima Wahal, known for penning songs in “Bajirao Mastani”, “Padmaavat”, “Animal”, and “Kalki 2898 AD”.

Wahal said music streaming platforms need to design a “crediting system” for artists in India.

“Platforms follow the Western model, where performers write their own lyrics. However, in India, songs are often sung and written by different artists,” she said.

The larger problem is the reluctance to accept change, which is inevitable, added Singh.

“…Acceptance is the first step. For example, artificial intelligence (AI) is here and changing things. But if artificial imagination shows up, we’re doomed. We’ll be fighting for our words, not just credits. We have to adapt.”