Khayyam named for Hridaynath Award for lifetime achievement

National Award winning music director Mohammed Zahur Khayyam Hashmi, famous as 'Khayyam', has been named for this year's Hridaynath Award for Lifetime Achievement, an official said here on Monday. Instituted by the Hridayesh Arts, the award carries a cash prize of Rs 100,000 and a memento and shall be conferred by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis at a function here on October 26 with Culture Minister Vinod Tawde and other dignitaries in attendance.

Avinash Prabhavalkar, an official of Hridayesh Arts, said the award ceremony coincides with the 81st birthday of Hridaynath Mangeshkar after whom it is named. Hridaynath is the only and youngest brother of the legendary Mangeshkar singer-sisters - Lata, Asha, Usha and Meena, all children of the great composer, Deenanath Mangeshkar.

The veteran composer, lyricist and writer Khayyam, 91, started his music career in Ludhiana in 1943 at the age of 17. Later, the Padma Bhushan awardee teamed up as Sharma of the music-director duo 'Sharmaji-Varmaji' to compose music for films like "Heer Ranjha" (1948) and others. It was the 1961 blockbuster ‘Shola Aur Shabnam’ which firmly established Khayyam as a top-notch music director. followed by films like ‘Aakhri Khat’  Later, he composed music for films like ‘Kabhi Kabhi’ (1975), ‘Trishul’ (1978), ‘Noorie’ (1979), ‘Thodisi Bewafai’ (1980) and  ‘Sultan’ (1983).