Latest news with #ToBeOrNotToB:AmitabhBachchan
Indian Express
24-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Indian Express
‘Amitabh Bachchan was sitting jobless at home after 11 flops, but Jaya Bachchan never stopped believing in him'; Javed Akhtar recalls pitching Zanjeer to Big B
Amitabh Bachchan wasn't a product of the film industry, but he got over 10 opportunities to prove himself before he finally did. He started with a string of flops, and was basically out of work when Javed Akhtar and Salim Khan fought for him to star in the film Zanjeer. It would establish him as a star, and send him on a journey that continues to this day. Bachchan is among the most popular movie stars in cinema history, and perhaps the most popular that India has ever produced. And it all began with Zanjeer, a movie that was pitched to him at a time when he had no work. In an interview with Hook Global, Javed Akhtar said that he and Salim Khan cannot take credit for 'launching' Bachchan as the 'Angry Young Man', although he admitted that they had to fight for him to be cast in Zanjeer because he wasn't considered to be commercially viable at the time. He praised Bachchan for the performance that he delivered in the film, which was unlike anything that had been seen before in Hindi cinema. He said, 'Most of the time, we don't respect the talent. There were very few people who had great respect for him, even after 11 of his films had flopped in a row.' Also read – 'Gave a hit with a super-duper flop actor Amitabh Bachchan': Javed Akhtar says he, Salim Khan had no work for 9 months after delivering 4 hits He continued, 'Jaya ji wasn't his wife then, knew what he (was capable of) and had great respect for his talent. Hrishikesh Mukherjee had a great respect for his talent, and kept on giving him work. We saw him in a film that didn't do well, but we could see that he is a volcano, waiting to erupt. He was very good in his worst films also. The film was bad, the script was bad, the dialogue was bad, the screenplay was wrong, but his work was impeccable. We had total confidence. Here is a major, major star who was waiting for the right opportunity.' Asked what it was like to pitch Zanjeer to Bachchan in the early 1970s, Javed Akhtar recalled, 'I was totally convinced that nobody could play this role the way he could. I hardly knew him when I narrated the script to him. We had met only once before. I called him. I said, 'There is a script I would like to narrate to you. When can I meet you?' He summoned me immediately, because he was sitting around jobless. I went an narrated the complete script, and he looked at me with wonder. He asked, 'Do you think I can pull this role off?' I said, 'Nobody in this country can play it better than you'.' In Khalid Mohamed's book, To Be Or Not To B: Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya recalled the moments of sorrow that both her husband and son went through in their professional lives. She said about Amitabh, 'I never took his flops seriously; I was convinced that they were a passing phase. He was learning and improving. He would not get depressed by his failures but yes, at times he would retort sharply, 'Naturally no one wants me since I'm a flop actor.' Zanjeer paved the way for further Salim-Javed potboilers starring Bachchan, such as Deewaar and Sholay. The writer-duo split up not long afterwards, and went on their separate paths. Javed Akhtar established himself as a lyricist, while Bachchan continues to be one of Hindi cinema's greatest movie stars.
Indian Express
02-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Indian Express
Nobody even looked at Abhishek Bachchan when he walked into a room, he'd call himself a ‘flop actor' in front of mom Jaya Bachchan
Abhishek Bachchan debuted as an actor in the year 2000, with immense expectations. He was, of course, the son of the legendary stars Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan. His first film, Refugee, earned him admiration, but a string of flops followed. There came a time when Abhishek was ignored in public places because people simply didn't care about him enough. He said that things changed for him after Dhoom became a blockbuster in 2004. In an interview, Abhishek said that the setbacks gave him perspective, as he recalled a piece of advice that Hrithik Roshan shared with him after Dhoom's success. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter India, Abhishek said, 'Actors are very fragile people. We put on this exterior, but actually, on the inside, we're like scared children. You're looking for validation. You're scared of going unrecognised when you go out somewhere. I genuinely hope for any actor that they get to experience both. That's when you learn to value each of them. I've walked into rooms where nobody even turns and looks at you. I've walked into a hotel lobby, and it didn't make a difference. I expected it to make a difference because I'm a film star…' Also read – 'Is this why I worked so hard, spent on your education?': Amitabh Bachchan couldn't hide his disappointment in son Abhishek He continued, 'You walk into a hotel lobby and you expect someone will come for an autograph, and then, nobody comes. You swallow that, and you keep going. A couple of months later, Dhoom comes out, and you walk into the Marriott and the lobby comes to a standstill. You only value that because you've been at the other end. And because you've been at the other end, you never want to go back there, so you work even harder… I say this often: The foundation stone of success is laid on the ground of failure.' Abhishek recalled what Hrithik Roshan told him the same night that the lobby came to a standstill. Hrithik had experienced overnight stardom following the release of his debut film, and is still regarded as the last major movie star to be launched in the Hindi film industry. 'He was there and he was so happy. He hugged me and he said something in my ear which just threw me off. But it's kept me so aligned to what has happened. He said, 'Till now it was nothing, your problems start now. Now you have something to lose'.' In Khalid Mohamed's book, To Be Or Not To B: Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya recalled the moments of sorrow that both her husband and son went through in their professional lives. She said about Amitabh, 'I never took his flops seriously; I was convinced that they were a passing phase. He was learning and improving. He would not get depressed by his failures but yes, at times he would retort sharply, 'Naturally no one wants me since I'm a flop actor.' Now Abhishek talks like this all the time and again I am convinced that it is just a passing phase.' The book was released in 2002, two years after Abhishek made his acting debut. Some years ago, Abhishek had admitted that he nearly quit acting after the string of flops, but was talked down from the ledge by his father.
