Today, all the Bollywood fans are celebrating. What are they celebrating? They are celebrating their favourite icon, Amitabh Bachchan's, 80th birthday. I have seen innumerable posts on social media about it today, and my post would be one more drop in the ocean of well wishes on his birthday.
Where to start and where to end writing about this iconic legend? I haven't seen any of his pictures in a cinema hall. By the time I was in school, he had started doing some non-sensical films, and it is best not to write about them. I am a fan of his movies from the 70's, 80's, and 90's. He has played many titular roles in many action movies, and some of my favourites are Amar Akbar Anthony, Ram Balram, Suhaag, Parwarish, Naseeb, Dostana, Coolie, Sholay and many more, where he played one of the leads. There was always a crowd of heroes and heroines in the movie, but his character was always loved and appreciated by people. I am sure people just flocked to see him on screen. Movies like Shahenshah, Mard, Agneepath, Don and Hum took him to the masses, and he became a common man's icon and was hugely popular owing to his down-to-earth persona. He was an angry young man, a representative of the common man, sharing the angst and tribulations that ordinary people face daily.
Many of his movie dialogues have become immortal in history.
आज मेरे पास बंगला है, गाड़ी है, बैंक बैलेंस है, क्या है तुम्हारे पास - दीवार
रिश्ते में तो हम तुम्हारे बाप लगते हैं, नाम है शहंशाह -शहंशाह
डॉन को पकड़ना मुश्किल ही नहीं नामुमकिन है -डॉन
मैं आज भी फेंके हुए पैसे नहीं उठाता -दीवार
हम जहां खड़े हो जाते हैं, लाइन वहीं से शुरू होती है - कालिया
He had his ups and downs, scandals, rumours of affairs with a famous actress, but he took everything in his stride. He maintained an air of dignity and never hurt the common man's sentiments.
When he started anchoring the quiz show, Kaun Banega Karodpati, his popularity crossed all the limits and he was now accessible to everyone on a small screen. People were hooked on the show, and the contestants were often in awe and short of words when they were called on to the hot seat. Amitabh Bachchan has always respected the sentiments of the people who approached him on the show, and he often became teary-eyed owing to the love, affection, and admiration of the people around the world.
He reinvented himself with time, aged maturely and gracefully, and gave us the best movies of his career: Piku, Pink, and Badla. I liked the fact that he chose diverse stories to give people a glimpse into his talent, even at the age of 80. I think he was born to rule the movies, and I can't imagine Hindi movies without his presence. He has ruled the hearts of people for decades and continues to do so even today. He is an avid reader, has no smoking or drinking habits, does his exercise routine regularly, and has a presence on social media as well!
We would like to wish him many more years of good health and the wealth of some more movies in his kitty. It's every fan's dream that their favourite legend should live on for years together, and today we all want him to live forever because we all love him and adore him. He is a great example for today's generation on how to keep looking ahead in life and do what one really loves!
I will leave you all with my favourite song of his. Which are your favourite Bachchan movies? Or dialogues or songs?
जमिनीवर पाय ठेवून अदबशीर वर्तन करणारा, भारदस्त आवाजाचा, दुसऱ्याची खुल्या मनाने तारीफ करतांना स्वतःची तारीफ मर्यादित प्रमाणात ऐकणारा, समोरच्याला सतत प्रोत्साहित करणारा विरळा कलाकार अभिताभ बच्चन.
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