Amitabh Bachchan is an Indian actor who works in Hindi cinema. With a cinematic career spanning over five decades, he has played pivotal roles in over 200 films.
Amitabh Bachchan (pronounced [əmɪˈt̪ɑːbʱ ˈbətːʃən] ; born as Amitabh Srivastava;[1] 11 October 1942[7]) is an Indian actor who works in Hindi cinema. With a cinematic career spanning over five decades, he has played pivotal roles in over 200 films. Widely recognised as one of the greatest actors of all time, he is considered to be amongst the most accomplished and influential actors in the history of Indian cinema.[8] Bachchan is often hailed as the Shahenshah of Bollywood, Sadi Ke Mahanayak (translated as "Greatest actor of the century" in Hindi), Star of the Millennium, or simply Big B.[9] His dominance in the Indian film industry during the 1970s–80s led the French director François Truffaut to describe it as a "one-man industry".[10]
Bachchan was born in 1942 in Allahabad (now Prayagraj) to the Hindi poet Harivansh Rai Bachchan and his wife, the social activist Teji Bachchan. He was educated at Sherwood College, Nainital, and Kirori Mal College, University of Delhi. His film career started in 1969 as a voice narrator in Mrinal Sen's film Bhuvan Shome. He first gained popularity in the early 1970s for films, such as Anand, Zanjeer, Roti Kapada Aur Makaan, and achieved greater stardom in later years, dubbed India's "angry young man" for several of his on-screen roles in Hindi films. He consistently starred in top grossing Indian films with critical acclaim since mid 1970s to 80s, such as Deewaar, Sholay, Kabhi Kabhie, Hera Pheri, Amar Akbar Anthony, Parvarish, Kasme Vaade, Trishul, Don, Muqaddar Ka Sikandar, Suhaag, Dostana, Naseeb, Laawaris, Namak Halaal, Coolie, Sharaabi and Mard,[11][12] as well as some of his most acclaimed performances, include Namak Haraam, Abhimaan, Majboor, Mili, Chupke Chupke, Kaala Patthar, Shaan, Yaarana, Kaalia, Shakti, Aakhree Raasta, Shahenshah and Agneepath.[13][14] After taking a break from acting in the 1990s, his resurgence was marked in 2000 with Mohabbatein.[15] Since then he starred in several successful and acclaimed films like Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, Aankhen, Baghban, Khakee, Black, Bunty Aur Babli, Sarkar, Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna, Paa, Piku, Pink, Badla and Brahmāstra: Part One – Shiva.[16] For Piku, he won his fourth National Film Award for Best Actor, making him the only actor to do so. Bachchan also made an appearance in a Hollywood film, The Great Gatsby (2013), in which he played a non-Indian Jewish character.[17]
He has won numerous accolades in his career, including record four National Film Awards in Best Actor category and many awards at international film festivals and award ceremonies. He has won sixteen Filmfare Awards and is the most nominated performer in any major acting category at Filmfare with 34 nominations in Best Actor and 42 nominations overall. The Government of India honoured him with the Padma Shri in 1984, the Padma Bhushan in 2001, the Padma Vibhushan in 2015, and India's highest award in the field of cinema, the Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 2018 for his contributions to the arts. The Government of France honoured him with its highest civilian honour, Officer of the Legion of Honour, in 2007 for his exceptional career in the world of cinema and beyond.
In addition to acting, Bachchan has worked as a playback singer, film producer, and television presenter. He has hosted several seasons of the game show Kaun Banega Crorepati, India's version of the game show franchise, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?. He also entered politics for a time in the 1980s. Bachchan has also been involved in several humanitarian works and he is a leading brand endorser in India. Beyond the Indian subcontinent, he acquired a large overseas following of the South Asian diaspora, as well as others, in markets including Africa (South Africa, Eastern Africa, and Mauritius), the Middle East (especially UAE and Egypt), the United Kingdom, Russia, Central Asia, the Caribbean (Guyana, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago), Oceania (Fiji, Australia, and New Zealand), Canada and the United States.[18] Bachchan was voted the "greatest star of stage or screen" by BBC Your Millennium online poll in 1999.[19] In October 2003, TIME magazine dubbed Bachchan the "Star of the Millennium".[20]
Early life and family
Bachchan was born on 11 October 1942 in Allahabad (now Prayagraj) to the Hindi poet Harivansh Rai Bachchan, and social activist Teji Bachchan.[21] Harivansh Rai Bachchan was an Awadhi Hindu Kayastha,[22] who was fluent in Awadhi,[23] Hindi and Urdu.[24] Harivansh's ancestors came from a village called Babupatti, in the Raniganj tehsil, in the Pratapgarh district, in the present-day state of Uttar Pradesh, in India.[25] Teji Bachchan was a Punjabi Sikh Khatri from Lyallpur, Punjab, British India (present-day Faisalabad, Punjab, Pakistan).[23][26] Bachchan has a younger brother, Ajitabh, who is five years younger than him.[27]
Bachchan's parents were initially going to name him Inquilaab (Hindustani for "Revolution"), inspired by the phrase Inquilab Zindabad (which translates into English as "Long live the revolution") popularly used during the Indian independence struggle; the name Amitabh was suggested to his father by poet Sumitranandan Pant.[28][1] Although his surname was Shrivastava, Amitabh's father, who opposed the caste system, had adopted the pen name Bachchan ("child-like" in colloquial Hindi), under which he published all of his works.[29] When his father was looking to get him admitted to a school, he and Bachchan's mother decided the family's name should be Bachchan instead of Shrivastava.[30] It is with this last name that Amitabh debuted in films and used for all other practical purposes, Bachchan has become the surname for all of his immediate family.[31] Bachchan's father died in 2003, and his mother in 2007.[32]
Bachchan's secondary education was at Boys' High School & College in Allahabad and Sherwood College in Nainital. He attended Kirori Mal College at the University of Delhi in Delhi.[33][34] He graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree from Kirori Mal College in 1962.[35][36][37] When Bachchan finished his studies, his father approached Prithviraj Kapoor, the founder of Prithvi Theatre and patriarch of the Kapoor acting family, to see if there was an opening for him, but Kapoor offered no encouragement.[38] Bachchan was a friend of Rajiv Gandhi and Sanjay Gandhi, before he became an actor. He used to spend time with them when he was a resident in New Delhi. Bachchan's family were very close to the Nehru-Gandhi family of politicians. When Sonia Gandhi first came to India from Italy before her marriage, Bachchan had received her at the Palam International Airport on 13 January 1968. She spent 48 days at Bachchan's house with his parents before her wedding to Rajiv.[39]
In late 1960s, Bachchan applied to be a newsreader for All India Radio, Delhi but "failed the audition".[38][40] He became a business executive for Bird & Company in Kolkata (Calcutta),[38] [when?] and worked in theatre before starting his film career.[41] It is thought that his mother might have had some influence on his choice of career because she always insisted that he should "take centre stage".[42][according to whom?]
Bachchan was struggling, seen as a "failed newcomer" who, by the age of 30, had twelve flops and only two successes (as a lead in Bombay to Goa and a supporting role in Anand). He was offered to play dual roles by director O.P Goyle and writer O.P Ralhan for the film Bandhe Haath in 1973. This was Bachchan's first movie where he had played a double role.[51] Bachchan was then discovered by screenwriter duo Salim–Javed, consisting of Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar.[52] Salim Khan wrote the story, screenplay and script of Zanjeer (1973), and conceived the "angry young man" persona of the lead role. Javed Akhtar came on board as co-writer,[53] and Prakash Mehra, who saw the script as potentially groundbreaking, as the film's director. However, they were struggling to find an actor for the lead "angry young man" role; it was turned down by several actors, owing to it going against the "romantic hero" image dominant in the industry at the time.[52] Salim-Javed "saw his talent, which most makers didn't. He was exceptional, a genius actor who was in films that weren't good."[54] According to Salim Khan, they "strongly felt that Amitabh was the ideal casting for Zanjeer".[52] Salim Khan introduced Bachchan to Prakash Mehra,[53] and Salim-Javed insisted that Bachchan be cast for the role.[52]
Zanjeer was a crime film with violent action,[52] in sharp contrast to the romantically themed films that had generally preceded it, and it established Amitabh in a new persona—the "angry young man" of Bollywood.[55] He earned his first Filmfare Award nomination for Best Actor, with Filmfare later considering this one of the most iconic performances in Bollywood history.[49] The film was a huge success and one of the highest-grossing films of that year, breaking Bachchan's dry spell at the box office and making him a star.[56] It was the first of many collaborations between Salim-Javed and Amitabh; the duo wrote many of their subsequent scripts with Bachchan in mind for the lead role, and insisted on him being cast for their later films, including blockbusters such as Deewaar (1975) and Sholay (1975).[54] Salim Khan also introduced Bachchan to director Manmohan Desai with whom he formed a long and successful association, alongside Prakash Mehra and Yash Chopra.[53]
Eventually, Bachchan became one of the most successful leading men of the film industry. His portrayal of the wronged hero fighting a crooked system and circumstances of deprivation in films like Zanjeer, Deewaar, Trishul, Kaala Patthar and Shakti resonated with the masses of the time, especially the youth who harboured a simmering discontent owing to social ills such as poverty, hunger, unemployment, corruption, social inequality and the brutal excesses of The Emergency. This led to Bachchan being dubbed as the "angry young man", a journalistic catchphrase that became a metaphor for the dormant rage, frustration, restlessness, sense of rebellion and anti-establishment disposition of an entire generation, prevalent in 1970s India.[57][58][59]
The year 1973 was also when he married Jaya, and around this time they appeared in several films together: not only Zanjeer but also subsequent films such as Abhimaan, which was released only a month after their wedding and was also successful at the box office. Later, Bachchan played the role of Vikram, once again along with Rajesh Khanna, in the film Namak Haraam, a social drama directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee and scripted by Biresh Chatterjee addressing themes of friendship. His supporting role won him his second Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor.[60]
The flow of successes continued for Bachchan in 1974.[61] He began the year with a guest appearance in Dulal Guha's blockbuster social drama film Dost.[62] After this, he starred in Aravind Sen's drama film Kasauti and Narendra Bedi's crime thriller Benaam, both of which ended up as average grossers. Bachchan's next release was Manoj Kumar's fourth directional venture Roti Kapada Aur Makaan.[63] The film opened to excellent response all over the country, eventually taking top spot at the box office that year and emerging an All Time Blockbuster as well as Bachchan's biggest hit at that point of time.[64] Before the end of year, he delivered a hit in Ravi Tandon's crime thriller Majboor.[65][66] Written by Salim-Javed, it also had Pran and Parveen Babi in the lead.[67]
Superstardom (1975–1988)
In 1975, he starred in a variety of film genres, from the comedy Chupke Chupke and the crime drama Faraar to the romantic drama Mili.[68] This was also the year in which Bachchan starred in two films regarded as important in Hindi cinema history, both written by Salim-Javed, who again insisted on casting Bachchan.[54] The first was Deewaar, directed by Yash Chopra, where he worked with Shashi Kapoor, Nirupa Roy, Parveen Babi, and Neetu Singh, and earned another Filmfare nomination for Best Actor. The film went on to become a super blockbuster at the box office.[69] Indiatimes ranks Deewaar amongst the Top 25 Must See Bollywood Films.[70] The other, released on 15 August 1975, was Sholay, which became the highest-grossing film ever in India at the time,[71] in which Bachchan played the role of Jaidev. Deewaar and Sholay are often credited with exalting Bachchan to the heights of superstardom, two years after he became a star with Zanjeer, and consolidating his domination of the industry throughout the 1970s and 1980s.[72][73] In 1999, BBC India declared Sholay the "Film of the Millennium" and, like Deewaar, it has been cited by Indiatimes Movies as amongst the Top 25 Must See Bollywood Films.[70] In that same year, the judges of the 50th annual Filmfare Awards awarded it with the special distinction award called the Filmfare Best Film of 50 Years.
In 1976, he was cast by Yash Chopra in the romantic musical Kabhi Kabhie.[74] Bachchan starred as a young poet, Amit Malhotra, who falls deeply in love with a beautiful young girl named Pooja (Rakhee Gulzar) who ends up marrying someone else (Shashi Kapoor). The film was notable for portraying Bachchan as a romantic hero, a far cry from his "angry young man" roles like Zanjeer and Deewaar. Despite its heavy theme, Kabhi Kabhie emerged a blockbuster.[75] Bachchan was again nominated for the Filmfare Best Actor Award for his role in the film. That same year he played a double role in the hit Adalat as father and son. In 1977, he won his first Filmfare Best Actor Award for his performance in Amar Akbar Anthony, in which he played the third lead opposite Vinod Khanna and Rishi Kapoor as Anthony Gonsalves. The film was the highest-grossing film of that year. His other major hits that year include Parvarish and Khoon Pasina.[76]
He once again resumed double roles in films such as Kasme Vaade (1978) as Amit and Shankar and Don (1978) playing the characters of Don, a leader of an underworld gang and his look-alike Vijay. His performance won him his second Filmfare Best Actor Award. He also gave towering performances in Yash Chopra's Trishul and Prakash Mehra's Muqaddar Ka Sikandar both of which earned him further Filmfare Best Actor nominations. 1978 is arguably considered his most successful year at the box office since all of his six releases in the same year, namely Muqaddar Ka Sikandar, Trishul, Don, Kasme Vaade, Ganga Ki Saugandh and Besharam were box office successes, with the former three being the consecutive highest-grossing films of the year, a rare feat in Hindi cinema.[77][78]
In 1979, Bachchan starred in Suhaag which was the highest-earning film of that year.[79] In the same year, he also enjoyed critical acclaim and commercial success with films like Mr. Natwarlal and Kaala Patthar.[66] He was required to use his singing voice for the first time in a song from the film Mr. Natwarlal in which he starred with Rekha. Bachchan's performance in the film saw him nominated for both the Filmfare Award for Best Actor and the Filmfare Award for Best Male Playback Singer. He also received a Best Actor nomination for Kaala Patthar and then went on to be nominated again in 1980 for the Raj Khosla directed film Dostana, in which he starred opposite Shatrughan Sinha and Zeenat Aman. Dostana proved to be a superhit at the box office.[80] In 1981, he starred in Yash Chopra's melodrama film Silsila, where he starred alongside his wife Jaya and also Rekha. Other successful films of this period include Ram Balram (1980), Shaan (1980), Naseeb (1981), Lawaaris (1981), Kaalia (1981), Yaarana (1981), Barsaat Ki Ek Raat (1981) and Shakti (1982), also starring Dilip Kumar.[81][82]
In 1982, he played double roles in the musical Satte Pe Satta and action drama Desh Premee which succeeded at the box office along with mega hits like action comedy Namak Halaal, action drama Khud-Daar and the critically acclaimed drama Bemisal.[83] On 26 July 1982, while filming a fight scene with co-actor Puneet Issar for Coolie, Bachchan had a near-fatal intestinal injury.[84] Bachchan was performing his stunts in the film and one scene required him to fall onto a table and then on the ground. However, as he jumped towards the table, the corner of the table struck his abdomen, resulting in a splenic rupture from which he lost a significant amount of blood. He required an emergency splenectomy and remained critically ill in the hospital for many months, at times close to death. There were long queues of well-wishing fans outside the hospital where he was recuperating; the public response included prayers in places of worship and offers to sacrifice limbs to save him.[85] Nevertheless, he resumed filming later that year after a long period of recuperation. The director, Manmohan Desai, altered the ending of Coolie: Bachchan's character was originally intended to have been killed off; but, after the change of script, the character lived in the end. Desai felt it would have been inappropriate for the man who had just fended off death in real life to be killed on screen. The footage of the fight scene is frozen at the critical moment, and a caption appears onscreen marking it as the instant of the actor's injury.[86] The film was released in 1983, and partly due to the huge publicity of Bachchan's accident, the film went on to become a huge blockbuster and top-grossing film of the year.[87] He then played a triple role in Mahaan which underperformed at the box office.[88] Other releases during that year included Nastik and Pukar which too didnt do that well, but Andhaa Kaanoon (in which he had an extended cameo appearance) was a blockbuster.[89] During a stint in politics from 1984 to 1987, four of his completed films were released, out of which, Sharaabi (1984) and Mard (1985) emerged blockbusters while Geraftaar (1985) and Aakhree Raasta (1986) proved to be hits.[90][66] After a three-year stint in politics from 1984 to 1987, Bachchan returned to films in 1988, playing the title role in Tinnu Anand's vigilante action film Shahenshah, which opened to bumper response all over the nation and was a box office hit.[91][92]
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