Happy Birthday Amitabh Bachchan: A look at Big B's legendary career

Be it crime dramas Sarkar and Sarkar Raj, subject driven Paa and Aarakshan or light-hearted films like Bhoothnath and its sequel Bhoothnath Returns, this year, Bachchan has been at the centre of the story. [caption id=“attachment_1752409” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Amitabh Bachchan celebrated his 72nd birthday today. AP[/caption] His upcoming projects include R Balki’s Shamitabh, Shoojit Sircar’s Piku, Welcome Back and Do, to be directed by Bejoy Nambiar. Bachchan made his fiction debut on the small screen with Yudh and though the show was not high on TRPs, Bachchan’s performance was appreciated. This, however, was not the first time the star was coming on TV as he was one of the earliest Bollywood stars to make his small screen entry with reality game show Kaun Banega Corepati in 2000. The show, which came at a low point in his life, when his films were not faring well, catapulted him new peak of stardom and widened his reach. Bachchan’s charm as a host and his friendly, intimate conversations with the contestants made it an instant success. The series continues to be a TRP gainer even today. Bachchan is known for his husky, powerful baritone and impeccable style of expressing on screen and humility and modesty in real life. The actor made his film debut in 1969 as a voice narrator in Mrinal Sen’s National Award winning film Bhuvan Shome and in the same year made his acting debut in film Saat Hindustani, where he was a part of an ensemble cast. The star was not noted as a performer but success eluded him for a long time. He did a couple of films since then but his first notable performance came with Anand in 1971, which saw Bachchan in a supporting role, sharing space with the then superstar Rajesh Khanna, who played the titular character. Bachchan’s measured and sensitive portrayal of a reclusive and shy doctor, treating cancer patient Anand, earned him praises. The film was followed by over 10 movies and though a few did well at the Box office, Bachchan was yet to make his mark in the Industry. He rose to fame with 1973 film Zanjeer, which became the first milestone in his career. He played a young restrained cop and with film’s success, he bagged the tag of the Angry Young Man of Bollywood. Abhimaan, Namak Haram, Chupke Chupke, Mili, Deewar, Muqaddar Ka Sikander, Shaan, Silsila, Amar Akbar Anthony among others in 1970s-80s followed, making Bachchan a huge star. He continued with memorable performances in movies like Satte Pe Satta, Kaalia, Namak Halal, Shakti, Coolie. His first National Award came for his role of gangster Vijay Deenanath Chauhan in crime drama Agneepath (1990). The ’90s were not a great phase in Bachchan’s life but he returned to popularity with KBC and delivered hits like Mohabbatein (2000), Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham (2001) and Baghban in 2003. His second National award was for Bhansali’s Black in 2005 and the third came in 2009 for R Balki’s Paa. Bachchan made his Hollywood debut in 2013 with Leonardo DiCaprio starrer The Great Gatsby, in which he played a non-Indian Jewish character, Meyer Wolfsheim. PTI