Lyricist and poet Sayeed Quadri, who has written the words to songs from films such as Murder (2004), Malang (2020) and Ludo (2020), will be felicitated at the eighth edition of the Rajasthan International Film Festival (RIFF).
He will be awarded the Hasrat Jaipuri Award for Contribution in Cinema at the event, which will be held from 25 to 30 March.
Somendra Harsh, founder and festival director of RIFF, said, The Hasrat Jaipuri Award for Contribution in Cinema is given every year at RIFF in memory of the famous Jaipur-born lyricist Hasrat Jaipuri to a personality of the film world who has dedicated his entire life to music."
Born in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, Quadri’s career started with director Mahesh Bhatt's film Jism (2003), providing the lyrics to ‘Awarapan Banjarapan’, ‘Mere Khwabon Ka’ and ‘Shikayat Hai’ in the film. Initially, Quadri did not get work after struggling for a few years in Mumbai. Disappointed, he returned to Jodhpur and became a Life Insurance Corporation agent. But when Bhatt visited Jodhpur, he gave him an opportunity and Quadri’s first song, ‘Awarapan Banjarapan’, happened.
Quadri considers Sahir Ludhianvi to be his inspiration and has received several accolades for his work, including the Best Lyricist Award at the sixth IIFA Awards for Murder. The lyricist believes that songs that are liked are those that the audience connect with directly. He has written close to 150 numbers so far.
The Grand RIFF Award Night 2022 will take place on 30 March on the occasion of Rajasthan Diwas.