Niharika Lal (BOMBAY TIMES; December 23, 2015)
Javed Akhtar walked out of a poetry festival in the capital after he was abruptly stopped during his session. The reason - deputy CM Manish Sisodia was waiting for his turn to speak.
According to the event's social media page, the organisers had initially not invited the lyricist. A post, uploaded a night before the event on their page, read, “So what happens when you get a call from Javed Akhtar saab scolding you for not inviting him formally to the Delhi Poetry Festival, Season 3? You simply apologise, say a quiet prayer and do what you're asked to do - invite him over formally.“
After an almost hour-long session, as Akhtar started answering the audience's questions, requests for poems poured in. But when the event's volunteers started taking away microphones from audience members, he said, “Let's not delay things, kavita phir kabhi kar lenge.“ As the chorus of requests reached a crescendo, the anchor announced, “Manish Sisodia ji bhi aa gaye hain, aur bahar khade hain.“ At this juncture, Akhtar walked out of the auditorium. The organisers followed him and even apologised. However, the veteran artiste just said, “Ab khatam karein,“ and left.
According to the event's social media page, the organisers had initially not invited the lyricist. A post, uploaded a night before the event on their page, read, “So what happens when you get a call from Javed Akhtar saab scolding you for not inviting him formally to the Delhi Poetry Festival, Season 3? You simply apologise, say a quiet prayer and do what you're asked to do - invite him over formally.“
After an almost hour-long session, as Akhtar started answering the audience's questions, requests for poems poured in. But when the event's volunteers started taking away microphones from audience members, he said, “Let's not delay things, kavita phir kabhi kar lenge.“ As the chorus of requests reached a crescendo, the anchor announced, “Manish Sisodia ji bhi aa gaye hain, aur bahar khade hain.“ At this juncture, Akhtar walked out of the auditorium. The organisers followed him and even apologised. However, the veteran artiste just said, “Ab khatam karein,“ and left.