Amitabh Bachchan: The Phoenix Of Bollywood

That he is one of the finest actors in Indian Cinema is stating the obvious. But Big B is not great just because of his immense talent, it's also about his enchanting persona - the nobility on his face, the modesty in his words and the sophistication in his style. Today, on the occasion of his 73rd birthday, here's looking at the journey of this living legend.

Big B entered films in 1969, as a narrator in Mrinal Sen's National Award-winning film, Bhuvan Shome. His debut as an actor was as one of the seven protagonists in Saat Hindustani, which released the same year. The film also won him the National Award for The Best Newcomer. 


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Interestingly, the man who later mesmerised an entire nation with his voice was given the role of a mute man in Reshma Aur Shera (1971), because director Sunil Dutt didn't like his voice.

Many of Amitabh's early films did not do well. His rise in Bollywood began with hits like Zanjeer (1973), Abhimaan (1973), Roti Kapda Aur Makaan (1974), Deewar (1975) , Sholay (1975) and Kabhie Kabhie (1976), to name a few.


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Big B entered a tough phase in 1982, when he suffered a near fatal intestinal injury while shooting for Coolie on the Bangalore University campus. He remained hospitalised for many months. Though he survived that ordeal, his health issues didn't end.


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He was further diagnosed with Myasthenia Gravis, a condition that causes muscles to weaken. His illness made him weak both mentally and physically and he decided to quit films and venture into politics.


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In 1984, he entered politics with the support of long-time family friend, Rajiv Gandhi. He contested Lok Sabha polls from Allahabad and won by record margin. But his political career was short-lived; he resigned after three years. There were rumours that he resigned because of the 'Bofors scandal'. However, he was later found not guilty in the case.

Just when life began looking up, a 15-year press ban was imposed on Amitabh by some film magazines. It is said that in retaliation, he also boycotted the press till 1988, which is when his iconic film Shahenshah released. However, his subsequent films in 1989 - Jaadugar, Toofan and Main Azaad Hoon - failed at the box-office. 


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Though this was the time he received his first National Award for the Best Actor (Agneepath, 1990) it didn't do much for his career. Hum (1991) brought in a ray of hope, but it failed to give his career the momentum it needed. 

When Khuda Gawah (1993) also failed to work in his favour, he took a five-year break.

He returned to Bollywood as a producer with ABCL, but luck didn't favour him this time either. Again, he tried his hand at acting, but those films could only give him average success.



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Finally, Yash Chopra's multi-starrer hit Mohabbatein happened in 2000, and with it began Big B's second innings in Bollywood. 


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In the meanwhile, he also entered television as the host of Kaun Banega Crorepati. The show was a phenomenal success. 



The subsequent years also saw him deliver some brilliant performances in films like Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham (2001), Baghban (2003), Black (2005) Cheeni Kum (2007) and Paa (2009). He won National Awards for both Black and Paa.

If there's one rule Amitabh has followed throughout, it's to "Never Give Up." He once said, "Frankly I've never really subscribed to these adjectives tagging me as an 'icon', 'superstar', etc. I've always thought of myself as an actor doing his job to the best of his ability."

We salute his spirit and wish him "Many Many Happy returns Of The Day." 

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