Filmmaker Aditya Datt listens to the songs of his grandfather, the legendary lyricist Anand Bakshi, every day before he begins work, he said on Bakshi’s 24th death anniversary on Monday.

“Every morning before a shoot, I listen to his songs depending on the tone of the scenes I’m filming that day,” Datt said in a statement.

For romance, he listens to timeless classics like Main Shayar To Nahin, Tujhe Dekha Toh Yeh Jaana Sanam and Chandni O Meri Chandni. When the day demands emotional depth, tracks like Chingari Koi Bhadke, Lamhe, or Naghmein Hain keep Datt company.

This daily ritual shows how deeply Anand Bakshi’s influence continues to shape Datt’s instincts. Recalling his early days, Datt shared an anecdote about his grandfather’s mentorship.

“The day I told him I wanted to do something in the film industry, he didn’t respond directly. Instead, he took a test without giving me a heads-up.”

Anand Bakshi had Datt sit through a director’s script narration of a film starring Ajay Devgn, for which he was writing lyrics. Days later, during a casual family dinner, he unexpectedly asked Datt to re-narrate the entire story.

“He wanted to see if I was really paying attention, if I had the passion, and what kind of storytelling ability I had. That moment stayed with me.”

Bakshi penned lyrics for timeless hits like Mere Sapnon Ki Rani, Zindagi Ke Safar Mein, Dum Maro Dum, Kuchh To Log Kahenge, Jai Jai Shiv Shankar, Tip Tip Barsa Paani and Humko Humise Chura Lo. He passed away on March 30, 2002, at the age of 71.

Datt is currently working on his upcoming directorial venture Gunmaaster G9, which stars Emraan Hashmi, Genelia Deshmukh, and Aparshakti Khurana in key roles.