Shabana Azmi says she identifies as Muslim but has no active religious practice, describing faith as a private matter that should not involve the state. The veteran actor also opened up about her atheist husband, lyricist Javed Akhtar, and how their views on religion differ.
In an interview shared on IIMUN’s YouTube channel, as reported by NDTV, Azmi recalled growing up with parents who held different attitudes towards religion. Her father, Urdu poet and lyricist Kaifi Azmi, was an atheist, while her mother, theatre and film actor Shaukat Kaifi, practised religion but not seriously.
Azmi said she sometimes uses expressions such as “mashallah” and “inshallah” because they are part of her everyday language. Javed, however, questions her use of such phrases. She recalled him asking how she would feel if someone constantly said “prabhu ji ki marzi”. For Azmi, the expressions are simply part of the way she speaks.
She said she had never been particularly curious about religion, while Javed remains a staunch atheist. Their differences sometimes lead to discussions about religious belief and the right to practise it.
Azmi said she has questioned why her husband feels the need to express his atheism so firmly when religious practice brings comfort to others. She recalled telling him that people should be allowed to find solace in religion without being offended. Javed, she said, argues that he also has the right to feel offended by religious beliefs.
“Yes, I am a Muslim, and I like Eid, Urdu, the food, I like all of that. But we don’t read namaz, and we have no association with religion as such,” Azmi said.
She added that the concept of God was not something she had personally struggled with. Instead, she views religion as a private matter and believes the state should not interfere in it. If prayer makes someone feel better, she said, she has no objection.
Javed was previously married to screenwriter Honey Irani. The couple married in 1972 and had two children, filmmaker Zoya Akhtar and actor-filmmaker Farhan Akhtar. They separated in 1978, with their divorce finalised in 1985. Javed married Shabana Azmi in 1984.
