Much to learn from the 'Shahenshah'

I am one of the several millions who grew up on Amitabh Bachchan movies. At the age of six, his was the first movie I ever watched in a theatre. He had the power to drive emotions into you - it was that real. You would root for his character - whatever shade it may be in. He is a phenomenon in bollywood that has spanned 53 years (and counting). Much has been written about him, spoken about him and he continues to be sought after for movies, game shows and advertisements - from savouries to life insurance products and beyond, even to this day.

There was a span of eight years when I didn't get a chance to go to a theatre after my first experience (that was the only option to watch movies till the early eighties until the advent of the famous VHS tapes), but the one thing I did keep track of, were his movies through the posters that would get pasted on the walls on both sides of the main roads and larger than life hand painted posters on select billboards or outside theatres. Some of my friends who were lucky to watch his movies would narrate the stories and I would sit and listen - awestruck. I was silently making a list of his movies I was going to watch some day when an opportunity presented itself. It was strange but true that I didn't notice or pay attention to any other star (and there were quite a few ruling the roost back then).

Then came the black and white TV era (you had to be really well off to own one). Sundays were the movie days with only one channel that one could tune into. It took quite some time for Amitabh movies to come to the small screen (possibly because of recentness and rights being costlier to procure). So, the wait to catch up on all the movies that he acted in came to an end when VHS players entered the market. Several friends would pool in some money to rent one for a few hours. An Amitabh movie was always on the list.

When televisions and video cassette players became more affordable, my family managed to procure one too. My mom and I binged on his movies for several months till we exhausted the list. Some of his movies would come back time and again - the one that I have never got tired of watching was Amar Akbar Anthony and Deewar. He could slip into any character with ease be it a die-hard romantic, an angry young man, character with negative shades or one who could tickle your funny bone to the limit. I doubt any critic, with a genuine taste, would have classified his acting in any movie to be over the top or underwhelming.

The additional attraction and the one reason I remember many of the songs picturised on him was that the legendary singer Kishore Kumar was his chosen playback singer. In the seventies the only way to listen to songs from his new movies was Binaca Geet Mala hosted by Ameen Sayani. It was an arduous task to get hold of the signal to tune into that show but we managed most times through some precise tuning on a radio.

As he celebrates his 80th birthday, it left me wondering how did he sustain a career for this long and remain sought after? From the little I have heard about his habits, this is what I could gather.

• His discipline is the one that is widely spoken about. Stickler to time and one who did his homework before coming on the set. It is told that he has this knack of remembering lengthy dialogues and could emote them with ease on sets.
• He got rejected by AIR (All India Radio) - terming that his voice was unsuitable for radio. Today people go all out to mimic his baritone voice.
• He launched a company which failed badly and took him closer to bankruptcy. He didn't allow his megastar status to come in the way. He went out asking for work. He even embraced television at a time when none would dare. He took risks that paid off
• His health took a beating after the fatal accident on the sets of the movie 'Coolie'. He claims that some of his critical organs function to just 25% of their capacity but his discipline to go by the rule book on health has been the catalyst to keep him going.
• He learnt how to adapt when addressing common people on TV shows. It wasn't acting that got him more fame. It is his ability to connect by being in others shoes.

Unlike what most would conclude, he hasn't had a steady run in his career but he chose to reinvent himself to stay relevant.

It is very important to sustain one's interest (and passion) in any job they are assigned to do. Alas, that is something I find dwindling at an alarming rate. Much to learn from the 'Shahenshah'. May he live long and continue to regale us with his acting skills.

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