The write choice

Gabbar, Munnabhai, Mogambo, Lakhan... all iconic characters that will always be etched in memory. No doubt, the actors who played these roles excelled in giving life to the characters, but the real credit goes to the writers who conceived them. We asked a few writers which are their favourite characters...

RAJAT ARORA
CLAIM TO FAME: Lines like 'Filmom mein sirf teen cheezein chalti hai: entertainment, entertainment, entertainment' in The Dirty Picture. Also has to his credit several films like Bluff Master, Once Upon A Time In Mumbai and Kick among others.
FAV CHARACTER I CREATED:
Raghu Shastri in Taxi No 9211. I have a soft corner for the first one that I wrote. Rest of them are variants of the first one. A regular person with some idiosyncrasies and the extraordinary situation he has to deal with. Raghu played by Nana Patekar had a witty remark for every problem he had. He had a different point of view of the world, which made the way he deals with problems interesting.
OTHER FAVOURITES:
Gabbar in Sholay: He was the most iconic villain ever. Nobody has come close to his menace or the popularity he got after the film released. Without Gabbar the film would be incomplete.
Vijay in Deewar, Trishul, Kala Patthar: It was sheer consistency of the angst that the character carried in a number of films - each different from the other. Just the character, power of the performance, the way it was written – everything came together to signify the angst and the situation the common man was in those days.
Raju guide in Guide: He was the most complex person. He was someone you could identify with. But what he does through the climax – repenting is something a common person cannot do. The character was outstandingly written. Raju is a helper, a destroyer and a man who repents.

FARHAD-SAJID
CLAIM TO FAME: The duo behind blockbuster comedies like Bol Bachchan, Ready and Golmaal 3. They are known for their witty one-liners and funny dialogues.
FAV CHARACTER WE CREATED:
Jugnu in It's Entertainment. This character played by Krushna Abhishek was the toughest to write. All his dialogues are connected with films and film characters, but still bring meaning to the sentence. For instance, he says, 'Badi Shraddha Kapoor se tune iski Aarati Chhabria nikali'. When we were watching the film in Gaiety Galaxy, his character got the maximum response!
OTHER FAVOURITES:
Sanjay Singhania in Ghajini: The character was so unpredictable. In 15 minutes, he would forget everything. There was also a thriller element to it. It was a dream character for a film buff to watch on screen.
Circuit in the Munnabhai series: The most lovable character Circuit was a winner with his one-liners and attitude. He was so loyal to Sanjay Dutt that when he says 'body leke aao,' he gets a dead body from the morgue! Munnabhai is popular, but he is incomplete without Circuit.
Vidyapati/Guru in Padosan: People love Mehmood and though it was about him and Sunil Dutt, Kishore Kumar's Bangla character was brilliant. He was very interesting. In one scene, where Saira Bano is looking from the window, everybody is ogling at her when Kishore Kumar points to Sunil Dutt and says 'Yeh Ram hai, baki sab Laxman banjao.' He goes all out to help Dutt. Even his look was interesting - the middle parting, oiled and flat hair. It was a comic version of Salman Khan's look in Tere Naam!

NIRANJAN IYENGAR
CLAIM TO FAME: Lyricist and dialogue writer, Niranjan has several films to his credit and including Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, Jism and Student Of The Year. The latter got him a lot of acclaim.
FAV CHARACTER I CREATED:
Meghna Mathur in Fashion. For me, it was personal because it was built from scratch. It was a character incorporating various real life people's traits and characteristics. Despite being a combination it came alive on screen as one person. Priyanka (Chopra) put her heart and soul into it. The character was very fulfilling for me.
OTHER FAVOURITES:
Sudha in Ijaazat: This character is my all-time favourite. It was ahead of its time. It was unusual for Rekha who was doing glamourous roles at that time. Though the film revolved around her, Anuradha Patel's character was far more interesting and lively. Rekha's had a quiet dignity to it. Her husband is not interested in her, but she tries hard to make the relationship work. She says a lot without saying anything, the way she looks at Naseeruddin Shah when she reads the telegram from Anuradha which says Mera kuch samaan... Her reaction is not that of a wife typically reacting to the other woman – she is sensitive to where that relationship comes from. All this is expressed with minimal dialogue. It could have easily slipped into being the weepy wife, but she played it with a great amount of dignity.
Rizwan in My Name Is Khan: It's a very well-etched out character. Right from childhood till he grows up, we know the motivation for his every line and action. Also, the character was tricky and could have transcended into being a caricature because it had a handicap. To add to it, the handicap was new – Asperger's syndrome. People were not familiar with it then. It was an unusual sort of disorder. Shah Rukh Khan put a lot of life into it. He managed to keep it within mainstream, and yet did not veer away from the realism of an Asperger's patient.
Hari in Koshish: The dignity with which Sanjeev Kumar portrayed his character's handicap without seeking sympathy makes this character a favourite. Fifteen minutes into the film you forget he is dumb and deaf and react to his sorrow and anger as if he is has all his faculties. You make no concessions. Even when he is hitting the child because he is scared the kid may turn out like him. There are several such moments in the film. Of course when a character comes alive on screen, you can't give credit to one particular department. It involves writing, direction and performance with conviction. This was a classic example of all three being on the same page.

TUSHAR HIRANANDANI
CLAIM TO FAME: Be it a comedy - Housefull 2, Double Dhamaal, Grand Masti or thriller Ek Villain or romcom Main Tera Hero, Tushar Hiranandani has been scripting his way to success.
FAV CHARACTER I CREATED:
Ritesh Deshmukh's in Ek Villain. I like him because he is a villain with a twist. It had a new angle. It was about a simple man who is a serial killer and in love with his wife. When Mohit (Suri, director) and I cracked this character, we knew the film was made! May be, the character has some shades of me in it!
OTHER FAVOURITES:
Anand in Anand: Anand is my all-time favourite character. The entire film is based on him. A happy guy, Anand with a smile on his face helps other people live their lives even as he is dying. The character moved me deeply.
Munnabhai in the Munnabhai series: He is the best character created by Raju Hirani on celluloid. He is not only entertaining but also teaches moral lessons, which is very rare.
DJ in Rang De Basanti: In that film, everyone was really nice, but it's this character was making me laugh and cry. Sharman Joshi's DJ was positive throughout the film. I got connected to this gullible and fun guy.

BHAVANI IYER
CLAIM TO FAME: Best known for scripting the acclaimed film Black, Bhavani Iyer has movies like Guzaarish and Lootera to her credit. She has also written the Indian version of the TV show 24.
FAV CHARACTER I CREATED:
It has to be Pakhi from Lootera. I think she represents femininity and womanhood in a manner that is relevant even today. However, most of it happened without it really being intended towards creating a character like a representative of a woman writer. Yet, she is my doppelganger.
OTHER FAVOURITES:
Anand in Anand: Because he represents hope. It was such a incredibly poignant representation of what a person who is about to die would be. It was set in such a beautiful and light manner, I loved it.
Count Laszlo Almasy in English Patient: Played by Ralph Fienes, the character represents unrequited love. It's the kind of love that all of us would like to have at some point in our life.
Iris Murdoch in Iris: Mainly because I love woman characters in films and Judi Dench played this extremely well.