Happy birthday to Amitabh Bacchan.

Happy birthday to Amitabh Bacchan.

The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to the megastar of bollywood films Amitabh Bacchan on 11th October, 2010. Born in 1942, he had been the most popular actor of the entire millennium.

In the 70s his films like Zanjeer, Sholay, Deewar created a new age of action films. His angry young man image created a revolution during an age when corruption became rampant in India. If Zanjeer was related to the obstacles faced by an honest police officer to safely perform his duties, Deewar was based on the contradiction of two brothers of whom one was a police officer, while the other was compelled to be a smuggler due to social compulsions. Sholay was based on the story of domination of the Chambal region of India by dacoits. The Thakur (played by Sanjeev Kumar) of the village employed two brave criminals namely Big B and Dharmender to face the dacoits.


Big B was a very powerful actor and became the choice of all the leading directors of the 70s and 80s. His films included Abhimaan directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Sholay directed by Ramesh Sippy, Zanjeer directed by Prakash Mehra, Deewar directed by Yash Chopra, Barsaat Ki Ek Raat directed by Shakti Samanta, to name a few. The other factor which singled out Big B with the other actors in terms of his versatility was his baritone voice which he modulated to perfection.

His comedy films like Namakhalal, Chupke Chupke, Amar Akbar Anthony, created new dimensions in Indian film history. His notable films during the 80s included Shakti, Akhree Rasta, Inquilab, etc. Even in the 90s his films like Akela and Indrajeet carried his strong personality forward.

Big B had played a huge innings as a character actor and his films like Black, Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham, etc., showed the viewers, that after Dilip Kumar and Sanjeev Kumar, Big B was an actor with whom the directors could do any experiment. His performance in his son Abhishek Bacchan’s films like Bunty Aur Babli had also been notable.

In 2010, he received the national award for the best actor for the third time for his excellent performance in the film Paa. Day by day his acting skills are just getting better and better and he is experimenting in different types of roles.

The viewers expect him to continue the great work that he started 40 years back.

Rakhi Sawant said Amitabh Bacchan always copied Dilip Kumar.

Rakhi Sawant said Amitabh Bacchan always copied Dilip Kumar.

Rakhi Sawant had given an interview in Times of India on 21st September, 2010. Among other questions when she was asked about films that she had seen this year, she referred the name of Raavan. She liked the performance of Abhishek Bacchan in the film. And then she said that Amitabh Bacchan should learn from Abhishek Bacchan how to act.

The next comment was very bold in nature. She said that for his entire career, Amitabh Bacchan never had any acting style of his own. He always and only copied the style of acting of Tragedy King Dilip Kumar. Amitabh Bacchan had recently won his 3rd National award for the performance in the film Paa, and a comment like copying Dilip Kumar would have raised eyebrows in the minds of his huge fanbase all over the world.

Very significantly Dilip Kumar and Amitabh were actors of two different generations. Dilip Kumar started his career in 1944 with Jowar Bhatta, where as Amitabh started his career with the film Satwa Hindustani in 1969. In the mid-70s, Amitabh carried across his image of angry young man and directors and producers did cast him in roles suiting that image.

Dilip Kumar acted in different types of roles for more than 60 years, but made his mark in tragic-oriented roles where his soft tune of dialogue throwing had created a grammer of acting in bollywood films. But before Rakhi Sawant no one had commented that Amitabh had copied Dilip Kumar although his career.

Rakhi Sawant also said that she hated actresses who used Salman Khan for success in bollywood and left him. Her indication was towards Katrina Kaif after she broke up with Salman Khan. She did not see Peepli Live, so could not comment on the film. She also said that she was very music-minded and whenever she felt good she danced for the audience. The viewers can judge the significance of her comments.

Review of Uttam Kumar's Ami Se O Sakha.

Review of Uttam Kumar's Ami Se O Sakha.

Uttam Kumar’s Ami Se O Sakha was released in 1975 and created a great impact in the minds of the viewers. The director Mongol Chakravarty experimented with the literature of Ashutosh Mukherjee and the brilliant performances of the team of actors and actresses created a different dimension for the film.

Uttam Kumar belonged to a poor family in the family. His elder brother which was played by Uttam Kumar again with a different make up earned money by teaching students in the locality. One of such student Aroti Bhattacharya misbehaved with him, and her father thinking that the teacher had a bad character whipped him. Uttam Kumar’s brother turned insane and did spend the rest of the life in an asylum.

Uttam Kumar was brought up by Asitboron, the father of Anil Chatterji, who gave a new life to Uttam Kumar. Both Uttam Kumar and Anil Chatterji became doctors. They met Kaberi Bose, a writer in Lucknow and from that time got attached with her. Anil Chatterji married Kaberi Bose and all three of them remained friends. Anil Chatterji went abroad and returned to Kolkata and opened a nursing home.

Uttam Kumar met Aroti Bhattacharya, the wife of Tarun Kumar and ridiculed her in a party to take revenge about the ill-treatment done to his brother which compelled him to become insane. Uttam Kumar disclosed before Kaberi Bose about the entire event and the reasons for his action.

But Anil Chatterji got involved in unlawful practices. He took money for abortion of a child and the mother of the child died in the process. Uttam Kumar took Anil Chatterji’s blame on him and suffered imprisonment for seven years. He sacrificed his life to repay the contribution of Anil Chatterji’s father Asitboron who brought him up. Uttam Kumar lastly said he wanted to see a happy family of Anil Chatterji when he came out of prison, a family with a child.

The film was related to a serious subject and as such there was hardly any scope for songs. Even then Shyamal Mitra’s music was impressive. The two songs “emon sapna kokhone dekhini age” sung by Haimanti Shukhla and “ei hashi manay nato” sung by Shyamal Mitra were successful. Uttam Kumar, Anil Chatterji and Kaberi Bose were at their best in the film.

The film was remade with the title Bemisaal by Hrishikesh Mukherjee in the late 70s. The film did excellent business in bollywood. Amitabh Bacchan played the role of Uttam Kumar in that film, while Vinod Mehra played the role of Anil Chatterji in the film and Rakhee played the role of Kaberi Bose. Ami Se O Sakha was a clear example Kolkata’s dominance in All India films and for those reasons the film should be preserved and restored.

Happy birthday to Amitabh Bacchan.

Happy birthday to Amitabh Bacchan.

The viewers of bollywood films wish happy birthday to the megastar of bollywood films Amitabh Bacchan. He had been the most popular actor of the entire millennium.

In the 70s his films like Zanjeer, Sholay, Deewar created a new age of action films. His angry young man image created a revolution during an age when corruption became rampant in India. If Zanjeer was related to the obstacles faced by an honest police officer to safely perform his duties, Deewar was based on the contradiction of two brothers of whom one was a police officer, while the other was compelled to be a smuggler due to social compulsions. Sholay was based on the story of domination of the Chambal region of India by dacoits. The Thakur (played by Sanjeev Kumar) of the village employed two brave criminals namely Big B and Dharmender to face the dacoits.


Big B was a very powerful actor and became the choice of all the leading directors of the 70s and 80s. His films included Abhimaan directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Sholay directed by Ramesh Sippy, Zanjeer directed by Prakash Mehra, Deewar directed by Yash Chopra, Barsaat Ki Ek Raat directed by Shakti Samanta, to name a few. The other factor which singled out Big B with the other actors in terms of his versatility was his baritone voice which he modulated to perfection.

His comedy films like Namakhalal, Chupke Chupke, Amar Akbar Anthony, created new dimensions in Indian film history. His notable films during the 80s included Shakti, Akhree Rasta, Inquilab, etc. Even in the 90s his films like Akela and Indrajeet carried his strong personality forward.

Big B had played a huge innings as a character actor and his films like Black, Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham, etc., showed the viewers, that after Dilip Kumar and Sanjeev Kumar, Big B was an actor with whom the directors could do any experiment. His performance in his son Abhishek Bacchan’s films like Bunty Aur Babli had also been notable. The viewers expect him to continue the great work that he started 40 years back.

Rekha and Big B

Rekha and Big B.

Rekha had provided memorable performances over the years in huge number of bollywood films. Whenever she had acted with Big B, the performance of both the stars had impressed the audience.

Rekha was sublime in her performance in the film Silsila, where Big B had also done well. The songs composed by Shiv Hari were extraordinary. Lata’s song “yeh kaha a gaye hum” made everyone spellbound. Big B had sung songs in his own voice including songs like “neela aasman so gaya”, “rang barse”, etc.


Rekha had complimented Big B in the film Khoon Pasina. Although it was an action-pact film where Big B faced Vinod Khanna who had given strong performance in the film, Rekha had played her part very well. The film depicted corruption existing in Indian society in the mid-70s.


Rekha and Big B had done well in Muqaddar ka Sikandar. Although Big B loved Rakhee in the film, Rakhee never appreciated his weakness and admired Vinod Khanna. Rekha played the role of a tawaif, yet she had been loyal to Big B and helped him whenever required.

Both of them were sublime in the film Suhaag. Big B was a drunkard at the beginning of the film, but after Shashi Kapoor, the police officer, lost his eyes, Big B joined the police force. He took revenge against Amzad Khan who caused harm to their entire family and the people at large. Rekha did well in her portion.


The other successful films of Rekha and Big B include Do Anjane, Mr. Natwarlal, etc. All these films should be restored for their immense filmic value.

Amitabh and Parveen Babi.

Amitabh and Parveen Babi.

Amitabh Bacchan in his successful career provided superhit films in combination with a number of leading actresses of 70s and 80s including Jaya Bacchan, Rekha, Zeenat Aman, Hema Malini, etc. Parveen Babi also formed a very successful pair opposite Big B and most of their films celebrated golden jubilees.


They acted together for the first time in the film Majboor, in 1974, where Big B had a disease in his brain and got involved in a false case to help his needy family with monetary compensation on his death. When his doctor gave him the assurance that he will live, he unearthed the truth and identified the actual wrongdoer. Parveen Babi ably supported Big B in the film. Pran also acted very well in the film.

Both of them were successful in Dewaar. Although Big B had the major role, Parveen Babi accompanied him even knowing that he was involved in unlawful acts and was wanted by the police. Both of them died in the film, with Parveen Babi being killed by Madan Puri’s men and Big B being shot by Shashi Kapoor, his brother playing the role of the police officer in the film, during an encounter.


Both of them were sublime in the film Amar Akbar Anthony, where Big B played a seriocomic role. Parveen Babi played the role of the daughter of Jeevan who was kidnapped by Pran and brought up like a daughter. The songs picturised on Big B in the film including “my name is Anthony Gonzalves”, “humko tumse ho gaya hai pyar kya kare”, sung by Kishore and composed by Laxmikant Pyarelal became everlasting hits. Rishi Kapoor and Vinod Khanna also did very well in the film.


Both Big B and Parveen Babi were very successful in the film Shaan. Although it was an action film with Shatrughun Sinha and Shashi Kapoor also complimenting Big B in their fight against Kulbhushan who played the role of Shakaal, Parveen Babi matched Big B in the romantic portion of the film. The songs picturised on them including “pyar karnewale”, “janu meri jaan” composed by RD Burman became very successful.

Both of them appeared in other hit films like Khuddar, Do Aur Do Paanch, Kalia, etc. These films should be preserved as the viewers still enjoy the performance of the legendary combination even today.

By: CR Chatterji.

Related Reading

• The megastar of the Millenium - Amitabh Bacchan
• Parveen Babi – the stylish actress of bollywood.

Amitabh and Jaya Bacchan.

Amitabh and Jaya Bacchan.

Amitabh and Jaya Bacchan had performed together in the realistic films of 70s and impressed the viewers with their powerful performance. In Abhimaan, directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Big B played the role of a singer who went to a village and got impressed with Jaya and married.

Jaya’s musical talent was unearthed and she also became a renowned singer. She became more popular than Big B and it led to family tensions and Jaya left her singing career. At the end of the film the misunderstandings were resolved and they sang together. The songs in the film composed by SD Burman including “tere mere Milan ki yeh rehna”, “teri bindiya re”, etc., became very very successful.


Jaya and Big B did well in Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s Milli. Both of them stayed in the same apartment complex. Jaya became extremely sick and died at the end of the film. Ashok Kumar performed well in his character role. The songs in the film composed by SD Burman like “maine kaha phulo se”, “bari suni suni”, etc. became hits.


Both of Jaya and Big B did well in the film Zanjeer. The film was based on the story of a police officer who faced a number of obstacles to face the smugglers and lawbreakers in the society. In fact Big B got his image of angry young man from this film. Jaya supported him very well in the film and showed her concern during strong encounters. Pran did well in the film, specially the lips he gave in Manna Dey’s song “yari hai iman mera yaar meri zindagi” composed by Kalyanji Anandji.


Jaya and Big B also did well in the film Silsila, where Rekha also provided memorable performance. The film was shot in Kashmir and other picturesque locations and the music composed by Shiv Hari was extraordinary. Songs of Lata like “yeh kaha agaye hum” had mesmerised the viewers and is remembered even today.

Jaya and Amitabh also had other hit films including Sholay, Bangsi Aur Birju, Chupke Chupke, etc. As both of them had versatility in their performance, whenever the pair had combined in bollywood films, the films became box-office hits and also got critics acclamation.

By: CR Chatterji.

Related Reading

• The megastar of the Millenium - Amitabh Bacchan.

Kishore and Amitabh.

Kishore and Amitabh.

Kishore Kumar had been one of the leading entertainers of bollywood for more than 40 years. In the mid-70s, he left acting and only concentrated on playback singing. That was also the period when Big B ruled bollywood industry.

Although Amitabh’s films are better known for their action-pact scenes as he was identified as angry young man, yet major songs sung for him by Kishore had become everlasting hits. Kishore’s song in the film Abhimaan, picturised on Big B, including “tere mere Milan ki yeh raina” became big hit. Both Abhimaan and Milli were directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee and the music composed by SD Burman, contributed a lot for the success of the these films. In Milli, Kishore’s song, “bari suni suni”, touched the hearts of musiclovers.

In Don, Kalyanji Anandji’s composition for Kishore like “khaike paan banaraswala”, “yeh hai bombai nagariya”, “are diwano”, etc., were all successful. Big B gave excellent lips in the songs and all had contributed for the success of the film Don.

There were romantic films having songs sung by Kishore, where Amitabh was seen in a romantic mood, like Kasme Wade. Rd Burman had composed music for the film. The song “kasme wade”, picturised on Amitabh bachan, became a big hit. Similarly in Silsila, which was based on a romantic story with Rekha and Jaya Bacchan, Kishore’s songs for Amitabh like “dekha ek khwab” reached the hearts of millions of filmlovers.


Kishore could imitate any actor, and his style of singing matched Amitabh the most. The other successful songs of Kishore picturised on Amitabh include “Jaha teri yeh nazar hai”, from Kalia, “my name is Anthony gonzalves” from Amar Akbar Anthony, “chukar mere manko”, from Yaarana. The list can go on.

The program K for Kishore, shown in TV channels had dedicated one program only on Kishore’s songs for Amitabh. The combination is still alive in the minds of numerous filmlovers.

By: CR Chatterji.

The megastar of the Millenium - Amitabh Bacchan

Amitabh Bacchan – The megastar of the millennium

If any personality in Indian silver screen had single-handedly determined the fate of the big productions in the 70s and 80s it is Amitabh Bacchan. He created a larger than man image in the 70s which addressed the grievances of numerous Indians against the corruption existing in the Indian society. He gave a new meaning to action films where the message against the evils existing in the society reached each and every film lover in India and abroad.

Born in 1942, he made his debue in the film Satwa Hindustani in 1969. His initial films included Anand and Namak Haram directed by Rishikesh Mukherjee, and small roles in films like Reshma Aur Shera. But he showed his angry young man image in the film Zanjeer, 1973, where acting as a police officer he addressed the corruption existing at that time.

From Deewar, 1975, Amitabh Bacchan became the uncrowned monarch of Indian silver screen. He portrayed the character of Haji Mastan and showed the country that evils of the underworld can be prevented only by taking revenge by another person who comes from a respectable family and becomes a victim of oppression of the members of the underworld. The film directed by Yash Chopra also exploited very catchy script written by Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar. Big B died at the end of the film after Shashi Kapoor, the police officer (his brother) had shot him when he refused to surrender. The action scene in the godown in the film had been watched by film lovers numerous times and even respectable people started admiring action films.

In Sholay, 1975, the greatest hit of the last millennium, Big B along with Dharmender helped the Thakur of the village played by Sanjeev Kumar to face the dacoit operating with the Chambal region. Although it was based in real life incidents taking place at that time when the dacoits grew in strength and the police and administration failed to arrest them in the mid-70s. not only had Big B showed his action skills, but his baritone voice was exploited for serio-comic performance in the film as well. He balanced the villainous performance of Amzad Khan and strong performance of Sanjeev Kumar with his personality. During that age he also acted in the role of poet in the film Kabhi Kabhi, 1975 and comic role in Chupke Chupke, 1975 along with Dharmender.

His acting capabilities encouraged producers and directors in the late 70s to make films based on all the elements of entertainment that can be expected by film lovers including dance sequences, comedy, action, etc. On one side he acted in realistic films like Abhimaan, Milli, Alaap, etc. opposite Jaya Bacchan, Rekha and other actresses. In the action films Parveen Bhabhi accompanied him the most. In Amar Akbar Anthony, 1977, he showed his impulse on comedy roles alongside the serious performance of Vinod Khanna and musical performance of Rishi Kapoor. Producers and directors were encouraged to make multi-starrer films where Big B was accompanied by Vinod Khanna, Shatrughun Sinha, Shashi Kapoor, Rishi Kapoor, etc.

Shaan, released in 1980, is a an example of multi-starrer film, where Ramesh Sippy had showed exotic locations, good action sequences and provided entertainment to the film lovers. Big B was well supported by fine acting of Shatrughun Sinha. Besides there are films which were dependant on Big B along and became super hits by his own calibre like Don, 1978, Kalia, etc. In the early 80s, he faced the strong personality of Dilip Kumar in the film Shakti, 1982, his father who was a committed police officer and he acted in the role of a smuggler and confronted at every part of the film with this father’s notion of law-bearer. People enjoyed his loud style of dialogue delivery with Dilip Kumar’s soft style of dialogue delivery. Rakhee’s performance in the role of his mother was well appreciated by film lovers across the world.

In the mid-80s, Big B became an institution of acting by himself and films where he played double roles were admired by the viewers as well. In Akhree Rasta, 1986, his performance in the role of father who got out of prison and took revenge against the perpetrators of crime who wrongly convicted him for a crime which he did not commit had shown the audience that he had matured to act in character roles as well. No actor in Indian celluloid could show anger for the rightful cause with the sharpness that Big B had shown. He had also sung with his own voice in few films including Silsila, 1983.

These days with his son acting in numerous films, and he is seen in many character roles the new generation looks at Big B with the impression of a character artist. But the new generation should watch his films of 70s, 80s to understand the growth of action films and departure of the film making from the way it was done at that time. For reference Big B had lend his beautiful voice in Satyajit Ray’s Shatranj Ki Khiladi, 1977. It is difficult to highlight his performance in more than 150 films in a career spreading over 35 years, but his films should be restored to show the beginning of transformation of Indian cinema with the advent of modern techniques and birth of action films.