Gulzar Words Worth

His wizardry with words has amassed a teeming horde of admirers. Oscar winning lyricist Gulzar ('Slumdog Millionaire') ushers in his b'day ( August 18) and it's only befitting to pen a few words that illumine the oeuvre of this magical wordsmith.

New wave lyricist Swanand Kirkire describes him as an "absolute genius, awesome, a writer who brought great respectability to the craft of lyric writing in Hindi music."

Vidya Balan, confessedly, is an unabashed fan. Reportedly, Viddy goes all giddy over Gulzar's style of penning lyrics and would like to romance "a man who's in the same intellectual league as Gulzar."

Padma Bhushan winner in 2004, Sampooran Singh Kalra, more renowned by his pen name 'Gulzar', winner of numerous national awards and Filmfare awards, apart from a truckload of assorted honours, has gained global recognition as a poet, lyricist and director.

On his b'day, here's wishing Gulzar several more professional peaks in his career and scores of personal joys to light up the years ahead?