Kausar Munir

As a poet, screenwriter and dialogue writer, Kausar Munir is a bona fide multi-hyphenate. But she’s best known to Hindi film music fans as the lyricist behind their favourite songs. The Mumbai-born-and-raised Munir started her career writing for the 2000s soap Jassi Jaissi Koi Nahin and broke into Bollywood after her colleague on the show, Vijay Krishna Acharya, asked her to pen lyrics for his directorial debut, 2008’s Tashan. The song she contributed, “Falak Tak”, was a standout and kicked off a long-running career in which she has become a favourite of filmmakers such as Kabir Khan and composers like Amit Trivedi. Munir’s collaborations with the latter are among her most notable work and include the soundtracks to Ishaqzaade (2012), Dear Zindagi (2016) and Secret Superstar (2017), the last two of which earned her Filmfare Award nominations for Best Lyricist for “Love You Zindagi” and “Nachdi Phira” respectively. Her other nods—out of a total of five up to 2024—were for Jeet Gannguli’s “Suno Na Sangemarmar” from Youngistaan (2014); Sachin-Jigar’s “Maana Ke Hum Yaar Nahin” from Meri Pyaari Bindu (2017); and Pritam’s “Lehra Do” from 83 (2021), for which she took home the trophy. Lauded for her ability to express complex ideas—especially the layered thoughts of multi-dimensional female characters—through seemingly simple verses, Munir has crafted words for hits that include OAFF and Savera Mehta’s Apple Music India chart topper “Doobey” from Gehraiyaan in 2022 and the top-three smash “Raanjhan” from 2024’s Do Patti by Sachet-Parampara. Some non-music trivia: Munir wrote the script for the Hindi version of Inside Out 2 (2024).