Amitabh Bachchan spent his early growing years at 17 Clive Road, Allahabad studying at the Boys' High School. During the same time his father Harivansh Rai Bachchan's departed to London for his Ph.D. in 1949.

1957 - At the Annual Function of the school in October 1957, he played the role of the Mayor in Gogol's play The Inspector General, for which he was awarded the Geoffery Kendal Cup, named after theatre stalwart Geoffery Kendal, founder of the travelling theatre company Shakespeareana, and actor Shashi Kapoor's father-in-law.

Amitabh and Ajitabh Bachchan were enlisted in the prestigious Sherwood College, Nainital in the March 1956. A stark change from the life in Boy's High School, Allahabad, the school opened avenues of acting and drama for the young Amitabh. Reading the works of the greats like William Shakespeare, George Bernard Shaw and Nikolai Vasilevich Gogol, this was his first brush with stage, which would later be reflected during his years in Kolkata and his early days in Mumbai.

1962 - While at Kirori Mal College, Amitabh participated in the college drama society, 'The Players' established by Frank Thakurdas and Keval Arora in 1957. He was asked to audition for the role after Thakurdas heard his voice across the corridor. He acted in various plays during his graduation years alongside Dinesh Thakur and Kulbhushan Kharbanda, who were a part of the same theatre group.

After graduating and trying out various career paths, including the role of broadcaster at the All India Radio, where the executives did not find his voice suitable for the radio. Later over the years it was his voice that became one of his defining features, being used by even the likes of Satyajit Ray in Shatranj Ke Khilari, who openly expressed disdain towards commercial Hindi Cinema.
Amitabh later took an executive job at Bird & Co., Calcutta. Starting off at a monthly salary of INR 500, he switched two years later to Blacker & Co., a job that provided him better pay with lodgings and conveyance.

While in Calcutta, Amitabh joined the Calcutta Amateur Theatre Society (CATS) and his performances were noticed and appreciated in theatre circles. As a regular actor of CATS he toured all over rural Bengal, where he played the characters of Bolt, Miller, Beckett, Pinter and Shakespeare.

Amitabh's first release as an actor was K. A. Abbas's Saat Hindustani. The film set against the backdrop of the Goan freedom movement released on 7 November 1969 and featured seven comparatively new faces mostly emerging from IPTA's guild of actors and directors in the Hindi cinema - Utpal Dutt, Anwar Ali, Jalal Agha, Madhu, Madhukar, Amitabh Bachchan and Shehnaz Agha. Regarded as an important film for its theme of national integration, it won the Best Film Award from UFJA (UP Film Journalists' Association), Best Cinematography (B&W) Award from BFJA (Bengal Film Journalists' Association) and three National Awards for Best Film on National Integration, Best Lyricist for Kaifi Azmi and Best Newcomer for Amitabh Bachchan.
Despite being critically acclaimed the film wasn't a huge success with its release being delayed as the distributors were hesitant in releasing a black & white film in the late 60s when colour was the norm.
Saat Hindustani was first of the three films of Bachchan with Kaifi Azmi as the lyricist and the only b&w film of his apart from the Bengali film Jaban (1972) in which he had a cameo. One of the reviews in Blitz magazine's 4 July 1970 edition stated, "Hats off to K A Abbas for his daring to be different, for his consistent and persistent campaign for realistic cinema, which is all the more commendable, faced as he is with tremendous and terrible odds."

Amitabh played Anwar Ali, one of the seven soldiers in the film. Tinnu Anand, originally cast in the role had left the film to work as an assistant to Satyajit Ray. During the preview screening of the film for Meena Kumari, a long time collaborator of K. A. Abbas, she is said to have been extremely curious about the tall actor cast as the tortured prisioner and predicted that Amitabh would become a major star one day, but nobody believed her at that time.

The year also marked the launch of what has come to be known as the 'Indian New Wave' cinema. Small budget films produced by the Government of India through National Film Devlopment Corporation, helped for a new aesthetic to be developed in the midst of the commercial song and dance laden films being produced by the Hindi film industry. Largely inspired by Italian Neorealism, and influenced by the broader historical and cultural shifts in India, the Parallel Cinema movement gave voice to a nation in the process of forging its own national identity. Abbas's Saat Hindustani was also influenced by similar ideals, much like his earlier films that he wrote for Raj Kapoor, reflecting the Nehruvian ideology in all his works.
In 1969, Mrinal Sen's Bhuvan Shome, among other significant films of this movement, such as Uski Roti by Mani Kaul were completed. Amitabh gave the voice over for Bhuvan Shome starring Utpal Dutt.

Starting off with Anand in 1971, Hrishikesh Mukherjee and Amitabh Bachchan, collaborated in many projects in the future; a patnership that lasted more than a decade and resulted in many memorable films such as Abhimaan (1973), Namak Haraam (1973), Chupke Chupke (1975), Mili (1975), Alaap (1977), Jurmana (1979) and Bemisaal (1982). Mukherjee also worked as editor for Manmohan Desai's 1983 film Coolie which had Bachchan in the lead.
Bachchan's collaborations with Mukherjee mostly portrayed him in roles that strayed from his action hero persona that the audience had grown to recognise. In these films, he rarely lifted a hand, and was rather the egoistical singer envious of his own wife's sucess in Abhimaan, or the son of the rich businessman in Namak Haraam. Both films were released in the same year as Zanjeer, the film responsible for bringing to life the angry young man of the Hindi Cinema.
Even later as producers and directors capitalised on Bachchan's larger than life persona, collaborations with Mukherjee were melodramas of personal tension between close individuals.

Amitabh was cast as the second lead alongside superstar Rajesh Khanna in Hrishikesh Mukherjee's Anand, released on 12 March 1971.
Khanna was the winner of the 1965 edition of the All India Talent Contest organised by United Producers and Filmfare, along with Farida Jalal. He went on to achieve superstardom between 1969-1974 giving a series of 15 blockbuster hits starting off with Shakti Samanta's Aradhana in 1969.
Anand became a huge success on its release. The film was Amitabh's first release in Bombay, and his character Dr Bhaskar Banerjee, endearingly called Babu Moshai — a quintessential Bengali form of address used for gentlemen, became quite popular, providing Amitabh with a taste of stardom. For the first time the actor's car was mobbed at a petrol pump in Juhu, on the day of film's release. He later went on to mention, "Three shows had altered my destiny. I was a transformed man."

Hrishikesh Mukherjee had conceived Anand based on his relationship with Raj Kapoor. Kapoor called him 'Babu Moshai' in real life, and during a phase when Raj Kapoor was seriously ill, Mukherjee had thought of losing him forever, germinating the film's concept in his mind. Initially Kishore Kumar was considered for title role along with Mehmood. Several actors such as Uttam Kumar and Shashi Kapoor were also considered for the lead role but Rajesh Khanna was locked as the final choice and Bachchan essaying the role of the second lead.
Anand won several accolades such as the National Award for Best Film and several Filmfare Awards for Best Film (Hrishikesh Mukherjee and N C Sippy), Best Actor (Rajesh Khanna), Best Dialogue (Gulzar), Best Editing and Best Story (Hrishikesh Mukherjee). Amitabh Bachchan was also awarded the Filmfare for Best Supporting Actor, his first Filmfare award.
Amitabh and Rajesh Khanna co-starred again in Hrishikesh Mukherjee's 1973 film Namak Haraam. Khanna also did a cameo in Manmohan Desai's Naseeb starring Bachchan, both of which went forward to be box-office hits.

The next release for Bachchan was Sunil Dutt's directorial Reshma aur Shera, in which he essayed the role of the Thakur's mute son. The film featured an extensive cast comprising of Waheeda Rehman, Vinod Khanna, Rakhee, Ranjeet, Amrish Puri, K. N. Singh and Padma Khanna. Bachchan was elated to be working with Rehman, his favourite actress at the time. They would go on to share screen space in many films over the years, such as Kabhi Kabhie, Adalat and Mahaan.
Released on 23 July 1971, in aid of the Cancer Patients Society, the film, however could not impress audiences although it was chosen as India's entry to the International Film Festival, San Francisco, 1971 and was selected by the Film Federation of India as the official entry from India to the Academy Awards (Oscars) of 1971.

Not yet in a position where he could pick and choose his roles, Amitabh grabbed what was offered to him, including negative roles. His passionate performance in the film evoked sympathy for the character. He didn't know then that this was the beginning of many memorable gray and black roles to come.

Amitabh reveals that he had to be very alert on the sets because co-star Tanuja was a spontaneous performer and he never knew what she was going to come up with in the take. But it is to his credit that 30 years later he remains as fresh when working with Tanuja's daughters Kajol (Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham/2001) and Tanishaa (Sarkar/Sarkar Raj/2005-8). Pyar Ki Kahani saw the first two songs lip-synched by the actor on screen, Koi aur duniya mein tumsa haseen hai and Ek pate ki baat sunaoon, both sung by Mohammed Rafi, written by Anand Bakshi and composed by R.D.Burman.

Prakash Verma's Bansi Birju released in 1972 was the story of a courtesan falling in love with a poet, a trope not new in Hindi cinema. While Guru Dutt's Pyaasa (1957) was reflection on the minds of a poet disillusioned by the faliures of the newly and his encounters with Gulabo, the golden hearted prostitute, Bachchan's Birju marries Bansi, but trouble arises when the village discovers her identity as a prostitute. Shakti Samanta's Amar Prem released in the same year, starring Rajesh Khanna and Sharmila Tagore, looks at the figure of the prostitue through a maternal lens as the characters of Khanna and Tagore never get together romatically but are brought closer through the figure of Nandu, an ill-treated child whom Tagore grows to treat as her own child.
Bansi Birju was also the first film of Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bhaduri together, who would wed in the course of the next year. It failed to capture the audience as well as the critics.
Bhaduri who had proved her mettle with films like Satyajit Ray's Mahanagar and Hrishikesh Mukherjee's Guddi was notably the bigger star during this time and would go on to work closely in the 'middle of the road' films directed by the likes of Hrishikesh Mukherjee and Basu Chatterjee.

Late director Mukul Dutt had the distinction of signing Amitabh Bachchan and Shatrughan Sinha for three films but all of them proved to be jinxed. Raaste Ka Pathar was a non success, Patthar never got completed and Yaar Meri Zindagi though complete, was not released.

Along with a string of flops with Bansi Birju, Ek Nazar and Raaste Ka Patthar that year Amitabh also starred in S. Ramanathan's Bombay to Goa and S. S. Balan's Sanjog, both of which salvaged his standing in the box-office to a certain extent. The films, relased within the span of a month, were remakes of Tamil films, Madras to Pondicherry (1966) and Iru Kodugal (1969) respectively.
In Sanjog, Amitabh was paired along with Mala Sinha and Aruna Irani. The film marked his only collaboration with Sinha in the actress' long standing career. Irani and him went on to be cast together in many films.
It was during the shooting of this film that Prakash Mehra saw Amitabh in action, and thought of him for his forthcoming venture Zanjeer. 'He is so tall that it's difficult to get his duplicate to do fight scenes, so he does them himself,' Mehmood had told Mehra at the shoot.

Amitabh was shooting for Gemini's Sanjog in Madras at the same time as Jaya was shooting for Devar's Gaai Aur Gori. Sanjog co-starred Mala Sinha and Aruna Irani (again after Bombay To Goa) and Amitabh felt privileged to be working with talented actors who always came prepared on the sets. While this was the only film in which he co-starred with Mala Sinha in his long career, Aruna Irani later starred with him in many more films.

1973 - Prakash Mehra's Zanjeer released on 11 May 1973 and did not budge from most theatres before it became a golden jubilee hit. With Zanjeer, Amitabh and Jaya also forayed into film distribution. The success of this effort encouraged Amitabh to distribute more of his films. According to Amitabh, "Zanjeer was shot at a time when everything I was doing was failing at the box office. There was a great deal of apprehension in the financial market, and amongst the people who had invested money in the project. To their credit, I must say Prakash Mehra and Salim-Javed never once doubted me, or what they expected from me. I was wooing Jaya those days. It was nice to be with someone with whom you knew you were to get together permanently." (Cine Blitz)
The film got mixed reviews but its success with the masses turned it into a cult film, earning it nine Filmfare Award nominations.

1973 - Zanjeer marked the start of the collaboration with Prakash Mehra. The duo went on to work in around 7 films together, with genres ranging from serious, to action to out and out comedy films.

Writer duo Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar had seen Amitabh Bachchan performing a fight sequence with Shatrughan Sinha during the filming of S. Ramanathan's Bombay to Goa (1972) and had been impressed with the tall and lanky actor. The duo had submitted the draft of their film Zanjeer to the producer-director Prakash Mehra, who was turned down by Navin Nischol, Raaj Kumar, Dev Anand, and Dharmendra for the lead. Mehra, on the insistence of Jaya Bachchan (née Bhaduri) with whom he had collaborated previously in Samadhi (1972), suggested Bachchan's name to the writer duo.
Zanjeer marked the beginning of a long-standing collaboration between Bachchan, Prakash Mehra and Salim-Javed.

A product of its time, Zanjeer started the wave of what came to be known as the Angry Young Man era of Hindi cinema with Salim-Javed writing the scripts of the uncanny hero in the person of the common man who takes it upon himself to stand against the injustice of the establishment. Many of these roles were portrayed by Bachchan, sealing his stature as a superstar.
It was in the 1970s that the newly re-elected government of Indira Gandhi raised the slogan "Garibi Hatao" in the face of increased inflation, unemployemnt and widespread political and financial corruption. The period saw a lot of unrestrained anger among the working-class and student uprisings. Bihar saw the revival of retired politician Jay Prakash Narayan, who led the protests against the government.
Zanjeer, simulates the anger of the common man turned vigilante standing up against the system he himself is a part of. Both righteous and disillusioned by the system, he grabbed the culprit by the collar, and knocked on a dormant conscience. The iconic scene of Bachchan with Pran where his character says the unforgettable line: "Jab tak baithne ko na kaha jaye khade raho. Ye police station hai, tumhare baap ka ghar nahi" (you will not sit till you are asked to. this is a police station not your home!) presented a supressed rage shared by the audience. The hero was not a romanticised messiah but an everyday figure, rough around the edges, who's beaten down by a predatory social order but chooses to stand against the establishment and speak for his rights and by extension, the rights of every working-class individual. It was the beginning of anti-establishment films where the hero was an anti-hero.

Abhimaan (1973) directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee, starring Amitabh and Jaya Bachchan was one of the first hits for Bachchan after a long time.
Opening to mixed reviews, the film was loosely inspired by the 1954 film A Star is Born and went on to become a hit on the box-office and later a classic.

Parallels were drawn between Amitabh and Jaya's off-screen equation and the film's (Abhimaan, 1972) plot that revolved around a man's growing insecurity and discomfort with his wife's achievements as a singer. The film, scripted by the legendary team of Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Nabendu Ghosh and Rajendra Singh Bedi, saw stellar performances by Jaya, Amitabh, Asrani and Bindu, but the winning aspect was its music. Composer S.D. Burman and lyricist Majrooh Sultanpuri wove magic with songs that topped the charts for weeks. 'Teri Bindiya Re' (Lata–Rafi), 'Tere Mere Milan Ki Yeh Raina' (Kishore–Lata), 'Meet Na Mila Re Mann Ka' (Kishore solo) and 'Ab Toh Hai Tumse Har Khushi Apni' (Lata solo) became immensely popular.

1973 - The 1973 release Namak Haraam, was a continuity of the Anand team with same actors and directors, though with the role reversal in the current instalment. "In Hindi films the one who dies is considered a hero and Rajesh Khanna and Amitabh were both keen on being heroic. I didn't reveal the end to either of them until the day of shooting. I wanted it to be a secret", stated Mukherjee.

In an interview with the Cine Blitz magazine Amitabh spoke about the importance of Namak Haraam in his film career and stated, "Namak Haraam was a brilliantly written film by Hrishi-da and his entire group. Gulzar-bhai was writing the film. And I remember we often discussed what my character should be like. I met Salim-Javed on the sets of the film for the first time. We also had a great discussion with Hrishi-da on the storyline, as to who was going to die in the film. Eventually, Hrishida decided it was Rajesh Khanna. We all stood by his decision. It was a very exciting film. In many ways I consider it to be closer to the "angry young man" image that would follow later."

The film showcased the two leading actors as the best of friends but the equation on screen was far from real life. Rajesh Khanna was the reigning superstar for around 4 years during that time, but Amitabh had been evolving in his career and in the year of 1973 he already had a successful release with Abhimaan, another Bachchan and Hrishida collaboration and the release of Namak Haraam also sealed his position as the upcoming superstar of Hindi cinema. Later that year Bachchan would go on to do his first film in the series of iconic "angry young men" with Zanjeer.
Picturpost in it's review of Namak Haraam (1973) wrote, "Amitabh Bachchan as the rich son dominates with consummate skill and restraint. He is even better than Rajesh and, surely, he has arrived as a superstar. Rajesh Khanna comes to grips with a fighting character though at times he looks rather apologetic."

1973 - The year's first release for Bachchan was O. P. Ralhan's Bandhe Haath which didn't fare well at the box office. It was Bachchan's first double role but failed to connect with the audiences. The film added to a string of underwhelming box-office performances for Amitabh which had been preceeded by Pyar Ki Kahani (1971), Ek Nazar (1972), Bansi Birju (1972), and Raaste Ka Patthar (1972).

This was, for the record, Amitabh Bachchan's first dual role. Mumtaz, considered a hit pair with colleagues Rajesh Khanna and Jeetendra, co-starred with him for the first and only time.

This Madras action drama portrayed Amitabh as the outright villain. The film was shot pre Zanjeer and post Seeta aur Geeta; as a result, the distributor insisted that the climax should be only on Hema Malini, who was by then the undisputed top actress. Amitabh recalls how Jeetendra and he sat on the sets watching Hema do all the action sequences.In Hindi films whenever a pair is cast as siblings this usually prevents it from becoming a popular romantic pair. Amitabh and Hema played brother sister but this didn't come in the way of their romantic pairing in films to follow.

Amitabh was cast opposite Nutan.
His other leading lady in the film was dancer/supporting actor Padma Khanna. Interestingly Amitabh co-starred with a number of them like Aruna Irani, Bindu and Helen in the coming years. This was his only film with the Rajshri banner but 30 years later, Barjatya's sons and grandson Sooraj were to work with his son Abhishek Bachchan in Main Prem Ki Deewani Hoon. Similarly, director Sudhendu Roy later designed sets for many of his movies. In time, his daughter Sharmistha followed her father's footsteps by working with Bachchan in all of Yash Chopra's and Karan Johar's films.

1974 - Yash Chopra had announced Kabhi Kabhie with a multistar cast including Amitabh Bachchan, Rakhee, Shashi Kapoor, Waheeda Rehman, Rishi Kapoor and Neetu Kapoor and started the shoot in Kashmir. During this time, Salim-Javed recited to him the story of a dock worker who rises up to be a don, loosely based on the real life gangster Haji Mastan. Kabhie Kabhie being a complex film was slated for later and Chopra started working on the story with Amitabh and Shashi as the two brothers and Nirupa Roy, their mother.

This was Amitabh's first romantic film with Hema Malini and the first time music directors Kalyanji Anandji composed a song lip synched by the actor namely, Ho jata hai pyaar pyaar. Previously the music director duo had composed the songs of Zanjeer as well but Bachchan did not feature in any song in the film.

This film could truly be called a neorealistic film of its time for its concept and treatment. Bachchan played a middle class executive in the film. The other heroine from Roti Kapada Aur Makaan, Moushumi Chatterjee, played his wife, and in one sequence in the film, she stands on top of a bed to sew a buttton on his shirt because he is so tall – an intimate gesture later used by Karan Johar in Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, where Jaya Bachchan stands on a stool to knot Amitabh's neck tie.Benaam also marked the low-profile beginning of the actor's very long and fruitful association with writer Kader Khan, who was to write for him in multiple blockbusters.

The film began Amitabh Bachchan's long on-screen association with both Shashi Kapoor and multi-star films. He played a small role in the film, but later, because of his status as a mega-star, his face dominated the re-runs of the film publicity. The film had three eligible bachelors but both the heroines in the film starred opposite Manoj Kumar who was also the writer-producer-director-editor of the film. Bachchan was to later form a hit team with Zeenat Aman.

Majboor was Amitabh Bachchan's second film with Salim-Javed and his first with very popular co-star-to-be Parveen Babi. Its director Ravi Tandon later worked with him in Khud Daar, and Bachchan later signed Raveena Tandon, Ravi's daughter, for a crucial lead in his home production Aks.

1975 - Yash Chopra had made his directorial debut with the 1959 film Dhool Ka Phool. Noted for his depiction of romance and an ensemble cast, many of his successful films featured Amitabh Bachchan. The duo worked together for the first time in Deewaar, a mother-son story along similar lines to Mother India (1957), which has since then been regarded as one of the best Hindi films of all times and gained the status of an important classic.

The film kick started Amitabh's association with filmmaker Yash Chopra, a relationship that continues for two generations on both sides (Yash and his son Aditya and senior and junior Bachchan). Deewar was his second consecutive hit with Shashi Kapoor and the first that really set them going as a team. The film was also the first of many superhits with Nirupa Roy as his mother. It was a tailor made role for her and today it is difficult to imagine that Vyjayanthimala was Yash Chopra's first choice for the mother's role.

The post-Zanjeer and superstardom phase marked the beginning of many memorable first-time associations for the force that was Amitabh Bachchan. Zameer also marked a first with BR Films, director Ravi Chopra, Shammi Kapoor and Vinod Khanna.

1975 - Bachchan's characters during this era were not the typical heroes that audiences were used to seeing on screen. Romance in his films became the second fiddle while the main driving force for his characters remained ingrained in the subduded anger of his characters and their quest for justice. In Ramesh Sippy's Sholay, Bachchan, half of the con duo, Jai and Veeru, is the antithesis of the energetic and charming Veeru played by Dharmendra. He does not engage in extended dialogue with the villain Gabbar Singh treating him instead with extreme condescension.

Legendary producer GP Sippy's idea to make the biggest film ever and to cast the lanky and unconventional looking Amitabh Bachchan catapulted him to the top. Bachchan was only given the role after Dharmendra, the reigning matinee idol, agreed. He then became a hot favorite of Sippy's dynamic writing duo – Salim-Javed. Sholay was a mega success globally and is still a hot favorite with TV audiences and cinemagoers.

The film saw Amitabh Bachchan in a gray role, but he evoked sympathy because of his intense performance. Bachchan never could form a hit romantic pair with Sharmila Tagore and this was the first of their few films together. Gulzar, who had co-written Anand, Namak Haram and Chupke Chupke, attempted to write this crime drama-cum-love story solo, but the film did not work.

1975 - Amitabh revived his role as the 'angry young man' with Deewar once again. Writers Salim-Javed, introduced the racy Hollywood-type thriller in Deewar but it was done with the archetypical concern for the mother-son relationship that is so crucial to the emotional mooring of the Hindi film. Deewaar became a huge hit running for over 75 weeks in theatres and has earned the status of cult classic. Considered as one of the best screenplays written in Hindi cinema, the film catapulted Salim-Javed to a unique celebrity status never seen before for screen-writers. Their names became the selling point for films being highlighted along with the actor and director. Deewaar was also the start of long-lasting partnership between Yash Chopra and Bachchan.

1975 - In 1975 Bachchan collaborated again with Hrishikesh Mukherjee in two films, Chupke Chupke and Mili, both alongside his wife Jaya Bachchan. Chupke Chupke primarily revolved around the characters of Dharmendra, Sharmila Tagore and Om Prakash. Mukherkjee was initially hesitant in casting Amitabh and Jaya in the minor roles but they didn't mind coming second in their mentor's film and the director had to relent to their insistence. The film turned out to be a huge hit and as it turned out Bachchan was brilliant as the English professor masquerading as a Botany teacher.
Chupke Chupke released on 11 April 1975. It was a remake of the 1971 Uttam Kumar–starrer, Chhadmabeshi, a successful Bengali film directed by Agradoot. The screenplay was jointly adapted in Hindi by D.N. Mukherjee and Gulzar, who gave this film some of its memorable dialogues. The comic timing of the performers, the simple narrative woven into a complex screenplay, a music score (by S.D. Burman) complementing the film's overall mood and character, and fluid direction contributed to the making of a cult comedy.

1975 - The second collaboration of the year between Amitabh and Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Mili, was released two months after Chupke Chupke. A heartwarming tale of companionship and healing, "Hrishi-da described the film as an antithesis of Anand," stated Amitabh in an interviews. Mili proved to be powerful in terms of performances, script, music and direction. Jaya essayed the character of a cheerful girl diagnosed with cancer, and destined to die. Amitabh played a brooding alcoholic whom she manages to win over before her inevitable end. Released on 20 June 1975, the film, despite lacking in masala, was adjudged a hit. It won over the critics as well, adding another feather to Amitabh's cap.

Bachchan's penchant for working with supporting actresses and vamps in meaty, image-breaking roles (like Padma Khanna in Saudagar and Bindu in Abhimaan) came to the fore yet again in his third major film with Aruna Irani, who played a pivotal role as the woman who inspires him to take a courageous stand. This was Amitabh Jaya's third and last film together for common mentor Hrishikesh Mukherjee as well as with S.D. Burman.

1976 - Another ensemble drama, Kabhi Kabhie, featuring Amitabh Bachchan, Shashi Kapoor, Rakhee, Waheeda Rehman, Rishi Kapoor and Neetu Singh was released in 1976. Announced before Deewaar, certain sections of the film were shot before it was pushed to a later date to first allow the completion of Deewaar. The film, on release, was a huge success and was shot mostly in Pahalgam, Kashmir; much remembered by Bachchan in his later years.

This film completed a hat-trick with Shashi Kapoor and gave an impetus to his screen pairing with Raakhee. It was also Bachchan's first film for the Yash Raj Films banner and marked the 'serious' start of a later successful masala pairing with Rishi Kapoor. Mukesh's title-song, of course, remains among his top five hits of all time.

"Sholay was released in 1975, a year after Basu Chatterjee's Rajnigandha. It was made by Ramesh Sippy and featured Amitabh Bachchan, Amjad Khan, Dharmendra, Sanjeev Kumar, Hema Malini and Jaya Bhaduri. The most extraordinary thing about Sholay has been its fabulous success which has made it something of a landmark in Indian film history. Although its textual values were inspired by Amrican spaghetti westerns, it used an idiom that was not only new to Indian audiences but on that indicated the level of cinematic articulation that the Hindi film can achieve."

Mukesh had sung for Bachchan in Raaste Kaa Patthar, but in 1976, the year he passed away, the singer gave him two immensely popular numbers - Adalat and Kabhi Kabhie. The Adalat album also marked Bachchan's first credit on a gramophone record, for he recited a few passages in the song Humka aisa waisa na samjho and was billed with Mukesh. Bachchan later sang many songs in the films he acted in. Bachchan played his first father-and-son dual role in the film. Bachchan's co-star Neetu Singh, doing their first film as a romantic pair, recalls how his aura was so forceful that in one sequence, she kept saying “Amitji” instead of using his character's name during the take!

Though they had worked together in Namak Haram, this Dulal Guha-directed film was Bachchan's first on-screen romantic tryst with Rekha. One of his most superior films in terms of story and his performance, it had the first of his many popular songs with kids in Luk chhip luk chhip jaaon na.

1976 - The duo's next film together was Hera Pheri, a comedy that proved to be a raging success at the box-office. The film also initiated the pairing of Bachchan with Vinod Khanna, another rising star of the era. They went on to do many films together, including Mehra's Muqaddar Ka Sikandar.

In Zameer, Vinod Khanna made a special appearance, but Hera Pheri was the first of his full-fledged pairings with Amitabh Bachchan in five major hits. It was Bachchan's second consecutive blockbuster with filmmaker Prakash Mehra and his first film with lyricist Anjaan, with whom he developed a special family equation that continues today with the latter's lyricist son Sameer.

1977 - Manmohan Desai and Amitabh Bachchan's first collaboration was the 1977 film Amar Akbar Anthony, starring Vinod Khanna, Rishi Kapoor and Amitabh Bachchan, in the lead roles respectively. Desai's film is a depiction of a Hindi cinema style of syncretism, where references to the nation and appeal for communal amity remain oblique. The film is a testimonial to the limits of the Nehruvian secular nationalism. It explores the religious divide between communities that remains central to national politics.
Amar Akbar Anthony's importance was multifaceted and its success confirmed Bachchan's box office supremacy and also the consolidation of Bachchan and Desai's working relationship as they joined hands for 8 films.

Bachchan helped out filmmaker Deven Verma who had given two flops as a director, but the film lacked sparkle. Once again, his pairing with Sharmila Tagore was lacklustre. Him agreeing to star in my film despite my previous failed attempt as a director gave me a lot of confidence. — Deven Verma

His first major hit with Rekha, his second with Vinod Khanna, this film also saw the commencement of yet another association with director Rakesh Kumar. The Kalyanji Anandji-Anjaan-Bachchan-Kishore Kumar quintet became a market force to reckon with.

This was the second hit from Manmohan Desai-Amitabh Bachchan-Vinod Khanna-Neetu Singh-Shabana Azmi in a single year with common writers Kader Khan, Prayag Raj and K.K. Shukla and composers Laxmikant-Pyarelal. Filmlore has it that when the first print was ready, Desai called his heroes and told them, “For a change the girls have done better than the boys."

1977 - In between the angry young man era of performances, Amitabh in between dissuaded from the archtype created for him in form of films such as Immaan Dharam and Hera Pheri. Both providing a glimpse in Amitabh's charecterization, of hat found its fullest expression in Anthony Gonsalves, in Amar Akbar Anthony. Immaan Dharam revolving around the two tricksters played by Bachchan and Shashi Kapoor, the heroes rise to become good Samartians, something that Sholay also portrayed with Jai and Veeru. These films anticipated Amitabh as an entertainer, a shift from the broody characters that he was known for playing during that time period, giving him a carefree image that Manmohan Desai would soon establish and take to new heights.

1977 - By the 1977 Amitabh had cemented his image as the brooding "angry young man" and it was probably only in Hrishikesh Mukherjee's films where he was cast in real life characters, contrasting his image of the larger than life hero in the rest of his projects. The director's latest collaboration with the actor, Alaap, was a tragic tale of an aspiring singer played by Bachchan and the adopted daughter of legendary singer and Bachchan's mentor, played by Rekha.
The critically acclaimed film did not perform well at the box-office as the audience was by then used to seeing Bachchan playing the anti-hero and did not take well to the character of their favourite star holding a tanpura, portraying grief.

Alaap was also Amitabh's first film for which his father and the legendary poet Harivansh Rai Bachchan, penned the lyrics of the song, 'Koi gaata main so jaata' a classic sung by K. J. Yesudas. The director mentioned that the original script had a different ending but the gloom of the Emergency had made him pessimistic which reflected in the film and may have led to it being a huge flop.

The film's idea was later rehashed and used in many films like Uttar Dakshin and Vansh, but somehow it never had the same impact. Trishul was a blockbuster and the credit went to the extremely gripping and intense script of Salim-Javed. Telling the story of a turbulent relationship between a father and son, the fiery dialogues exchanged between Sanjeev Kumar and Amitabh it is said were Javed's indirect attacks at his father, Jan Nissar Akhtar.

Stories reveal that the cult song Khaike paan Banaraswalawas not a part of the original soundtrack. Manoj Kumar had recorded the song with Kalyanji-Anandji for another film but it was not fitting in the story. Manoj felt bad to discard the song because he was certain that it would become a popular track. The same evening his ex-assistant Chandra Barot, making his own debut as a director, visited him and Manoj advised him to incorporate the song in his film. When Barot looked unsure Manoj created a sequence for the hero to sing this number. Don was Amitabh's first romantic film with Zeenat Aman. Almost three decades later, it inspired Farhan Akhtar to do a remake of the film.

Don was the first time a hero played a negative role without any justification. A story of a dangerous criminal wanted in eleven countries, Amitabh in Don played double roles, the good and inncoent Vijay and the ruthless criminal Don. The entire film has a rapid staccato kind of beat, eloquently conveyed in the poster of the film.

Another hit with Rekha. Ganga Ki Saugandh marked the beginning of Amitabh's and Jaya's personal bond with actress Shammi. After the release of the film when Shammi and her husband Sultan Ahmed (the film's producer-director) got divorced, the Bachchans were a strong support for her. Today, Shammi is considered a part of the family.

My father, a professor in college, dressed in suits. That's how I remember him as a child and projected the same image for my role in the film. — Amitabh Bachchan

This was Bachchan's first film with Shakti Samanta, a filmmaker who's favourite star was Rajesh Khanna. The dual role film was Bachchan's first to be shot outside India.

1978 - Trishul directed by Yash Chopra presented the turbulent relationship between a father and son. Written by Salim-Javed, directed by Chopra and starring Amitabh Bachchan, Shashi Kapoor, Rakhee and Sanjeev Kumar, the film became a diamond jubilee hit, proving to be another blockbuster.
Salim Khan in an interview mentioned that Amitabh's character was probably the first real illegitimate child on the Hindi screen. Unlike the films preceeding this theme, Bachchan's character's anger in this film was more personal as it was a son against his father, instead of a common man against the establishment.

1978 - Prakash Mehra and Amitabh Bachchan collaborated again for the story of a doomed lover in Muqaddar Ka Sikandar in 1978. The film, loosely inspired from Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay's novel Devdas, the film became a mega-hit emerging as the biggest earner of the year. Although, not necessarily an extreme portrayal of the angry man on the screen the film had its own moments and the subdued rage of the main character was embodied perfectly by Amitabh.

1979 - The pair of Manmohan Desai and Amitabh Bachchan collaborated for the third time in Suhaag, an action thriller, released on 16 November 1979. Despite being considered weak in terms of content by the director himself, the film, on the contrary, emerged as the biggest success of the year. Suhaag had all the classic trademarks of a Manmohan Desai film, the lost and found angle, slick action, chance encounters and funny sets, thus striking a chord with the audiences.

1979 - Kaala Patthar was the fourth collaboration between the director Yash Chopra and actors Shashi Kapoor and Amitabh Bachchan and the third film in which Bachchan had donned his iconic angry young man avatar. Kapoor and Bachchan by that time had teamed up for multiple films appearing in more than 10 films together. Although, not as huge a success as its predecessors, the film had an engaging story and aptly captured the reluctant anger of Bachchan's character.

We again see Amitabh Bachchan the mega-star flirting with middle of the road cinema and real-life characters. This was Bachchan's only film as hero with Basu Chaterjee, though he did cameos in his films like Chhoti Si Baat and Khatta Meetha.

The rumours of the alleged romance between Amitabh Bachchan and Rekha first started during the making of this film. It could be because they were shooting two films simultaneously, Khoon Pasina and Mr. Natwarlal. The rugged locales of the two films look very similar, though their releases were separated by two years. The actor made his singing debut with “Mere paas aao mere doston ek kissa suno”, a song tailor-made for his range by Rajesh Roshan. The lyrics were written by Anand Bakshi, who had all of Bachchan's musical 'firsts' – the first songs lip synched by him, his debut playback song, and the first ABCL film, Tere Mere Sapne, later.

1979 - Regarded as one of his best performances, Yash Chopra directorial Kaala Patthar was reminiscent of his roles in Mili, Deewaar, Trishul, Faraar, Do Anjaane, Parwana and Anand, all of which portray an intense brooding introvert, a man angry with his circumstances and society in general.
In Kaala Patthar, writers Salim-Javed took the disgruntled Vijay from his earlier films and added a shade of masochism. Amitabh played a naval officer terminated from the job and now leading an anonymous existence in the coal mines.

1979 - Another collaboration between Mukherjee and Bachchan, and yet another departure from the actor's larger than life image was the 1979 film Jurmana. Assuming the role of a wealthy contractor from Delhi, Bachchan through these choices conveyed his preference for more rooted and real characters, a welcome change from his superstar image. Though, not the best of the collaborations between Mukherjee and Bachchan, Jurmana had its moments and was redeemed by R.D. Burman's wonderful compositions, most notably 'Saawan Ke Jhoole Padhe' written by Anand Bakshi and sung by Lata Mangeshkar.

1979 - Hrishikesh Mukherjee's film Jurmana starring Amitabh Bachchan boasted of an exceptional soundtrack with the song 'Saawan Ke Jhoole Pade' being the most notable. It was during the film's premiere in Los Angeles that the film's distributor Kirti Trivedi had the idea of organising concerts of Bollywood stars. The premier saw a footfall of around 2,000 people on a week-day showcasing the popularity of Hindi film stars. Trivedi thought that this popularity could be translated into the hosting of successful stage shows.

1976-1979 - From 1976-79 Amitabh lent his voice for the songs Hamka Aisa Vaisa (Adalat, 1976) with Mukesh, My Name is Anthony Gonsalves (Amar Akbar Anthony, 1977) with Kishore Kumar and Do Lafzon Ki (The Great Gambler, 1979) with Sharad Kumar and Asha Bhosle.

1979 - Bachchan's first credit as playback singer was for the track Mere Paas Aao from the 1979 film Mr. Natwarlal, which he sang solo. A music enthusiast from his early days, Bachchan had essayed the role of a poet/singer in his films before and forayed into playback singing with this track.

The interesting part about this film was that two of Mehmood's protégés – Amitabh Bachchan and music director Rajesh Roshan – were key players in the film, and Mehmood himself agreed to sing a line in a multi-singer song composed by the latter and filmed on a junior artiste! The gesture is further significant because Mehmood did not star in Do Aur Do Paanch and has, before and after this film, rendered playback only for himself.

It was the last script that Salim Javed wrote together and my fourth film with Shatrughan Sinha after Bombay to Goa, Raaste Kaa Patthar and Kaala Patthar. — Amitabh Bachchan. Nobody knew it then but duo writers Salim and Javed were on the verge of a split during the making of this film. It was a turbulent time both on and off screen because even the relationship between the lead stars Amitabh Bachchan and Shatrughan Sinha, the two protagonists, seemed under strain.Dostana is also important as the first romantic hit of the Bachchan-Zeenat Aman pair, and the beginning of an enduring personal and professional association with producer Yash Johar and family. Karan, Yash Johar's son, has produced another Dostana with Abhishek Bachchan in the lead.

Rekha reveals that writer-director Vijay Anand deliberately withheld information from artistes while shooting certain scenes to extract candid reactions. She recalls a motorcycle sequence with Amitabh in the film where they visit Dharmendra and the two engage in an inane conversation seemingly discussing the bike but in reality discussing her. Rekha now confesses that all Vijay Anand told her was to look bored in the scene and the effect was outstanding. It is the first time two of Bachchan's songs – Ek rastaa do raahi and Yaar ki khabar mil gayi gayi were adapted from popular Western songs. Eleven years later, Bachchan projected another Western adaptation again composed by Laxmikant-Pyarelal, Jumma chumma de de in Hum when the star created a song around the Mory Kante hit.

The original cast of Shaan comprised of four members of the Sholay team – Dharmendra, Hema Malini, Amitabh Bachchan and Sanjeev Kumar. Sanjeev Kumar was to play the villain, always an important figure in Salim-Javed scripts. The final cast retained only Bachchan. Dharmendra and Hema Malini were replaced by Shashi Kapoor and Bindiya Goswami and Sanjeev Kumar was replaced by Kulbhushan Kharbanda.

This was Amitabh Bachchan's first bilingual in Hindi and Bengali. It was his second film and first success with Rajesh Khanna's all-time favourite director, Shakti Samanta.

1980 - On speaking of his frequent collaborations with Bachchan, Hrishikesh Mukherjee stated in an interview with Cine Advance that, "because during the work of Anand, I found him a most obedient disciple. His respect for me is unbounded and there cannot be any question of my affection towards him. He to me is like my son. Few people know that he works in my films for half of his remuneration."

1980 - Amitabh Bachchan appeared as the chief guest for Lata Mangeshkar's concert in the USA, at the behest of Kirit Trivedi and director Prakash Mehra. Amitabh sang the song 'Mere Angne Mein' from his upcoming film Laawaris during the concert which had the audience grooving and got a thunderous applause at the stadium.
On sensing a bright opportunity, Kirit Trivedi flew to India to discuss the opportunities of live shows with Kalyanji-Anandji, the composers of the above-mentioned song.

1981 - Naseeb released on 1 May 1981, with a tag line, 'The Last Word in Entertainment!', befitting for the remarkable collaboration of Manmohan Desai and Amitabh Bachchan. Having worked on numerous films over several years, the duo had a penchant of striking the right chord with the audiences and presenting thorough entertainment.

1981 - In 1981, Silsila was Amitabh Bachchan's last collaboration with Yash Chopra, before they collaborated again in 2004 for a special appearance in another Yash Chopra directorial. The film involving Amitabh, Rekha and Jaya Bachchan was a love triangle written by Sagar Sarhadi and Chopra. Released around the time when the rumours of Bachchan's relationship were Rekha were rampant, many touted the film to be a depiction of the real life story of the three actors, though these claims were denied by all those involved in the film.
With music scored by Pandit Hari Prasad Chaurasia and Pandit Shivkumar Sharma, the film's soundtrack was a huge success. The Holi song 'Rang Barse' was penned by Harivansh Rai Bachchan and sung by Amitabh Bachchan. It was the biggest hit of the album and remains one of the most popular Holi songs to date.

Yaarana has the only disco song enacted by Bachchan Saara zamana haseenon ka diwana. At the time, the rock-star costume with lights used in the song was all the rage, which Bachchan picked at his personal expense on one of his trips abroad. Neetu Singh, his heroine, recalls that during the location shooting in Kolkata she was lovesick and missing Rishi Kapoor. Amitabh convinced director Rakesh Kumar to let her go home for the weekend. He did and that is why Neetu is missing in the song Chhookar mere man ko.

While Tinnu Anand made a debut with Amitabh in Saat Hindustani, Kaalia was his first with Anand as a director, and the latter's first hit as a filmmaker.

1981 - The 1981 film Laawaris was according to Prakash Mehra, an extension of Amitabh's character in Muqaddar Ka Sikandar, an orphan child. The illegitimate hero craving for love and belonging, the story of his struggle to rise from the ghettos and to finally be accepted in society struck a chord with the masses. Amitabh also lent his voice as a playback singer in the song 'Mere Angne Mein' along with Alka Yagnik in the female version.

1981 - In the Manmohan Desai film Naseeb, Amitabh sang a duo with Mohammad Rafi titled 'Chal Mere Bhai' which was a huge hit among the audiences. Bachchan lent voice to his own character while Rafi sang for Rishi Kapoor's character.
The same year Bachchan also lent his voice for the song 'Mere Angne Mein' in Laawaris.

1981 - Yash Chopra's Silsila had Amitabh sing playback for three numbers in the film, Rang Barse, Neela Aasman So Gaya and Ye Kahan Aa Gaye Hum. The first was a Holi duet with Alka Yagnik which became the biggest hit of the soundtrack and is still played during Holi festivities, decades later. The second track was a solo while he did the voice over in the third track sung by Lata Mangeshkar.
Silsila was Amitabh's first serious attempt at playback singing.

1982 - The year marked one of the most defining periods of Amitabh Bachchan's life. While shooting for the Manmohan Desai and Prayag Raj directorial venture Coolie, the actor was involved in a near fatal accident while performing a stunt scene with Puneet Issar, on 26 July 1982.
The accident and the subsequent surgery was testament to Bachchan's popularity as a star, as crowds of fans thronged the hospital and organised prayers for the actor's well-being. He was released from the hospital after spending around 2 months in the ICU.
In the same year Amitabh also starred in another Manmohan Desai directorial, Desh Premee.

Had destiny supported Manmohan Desai he would have been the privileged director to cast Amitabh Bachchan, Uttam Kumar and Sivaji Ganesan together in this film – the three reigning superstars then in Hindi, Bengali and Tamil cinema. Sivaji could not manage dates and had to be replaced by Premnath who played Puthu Anna. Desh Premee was Amitabh's third dual role after Satte Pe Satta and Bemisal in the span of six months. Music director R.D.Burman lent his voice for him in Shaan and Laxmikant of Laxmikant-Pyarelal gave the playback for him in Ja jaldi bhaag jaa…. Later, apart from Burman, composers Bappi Lahiri, Anu Malik and Shankar of Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy were added to the long list of Bachchan voices.

This adaptation of Seven Brides for Seven Brothers called for 14 pairs. While the director had no problems putting 13 pairs in place he could not find the perfect partner for Bachchan. They toyed with various names but kept coming back to Hema Malini. Hema had stopped signing new films because she was pregnant. Sippy met Hema and convinced her he would complete the film in a few months. If you watch the film closely, you can see
Hema's bulge and the cautiously choreographed dance movements. The film had another drunken scene with Bachchan after his trendsetting Amar Akbar Anthony predecessor, but to his credit the actor managed to make it memorable.

Khud Daar was released during Bachchan's hospitalisation following the accident. Even blackmarketeers turned emotional and sold tickets at normal rates. — Ravi Tandon
The film was co-produced by Anwar Ali, actor Mehmood's younger brother and Bachchan's co-star in Bombay To Goa. The release coincided with the news of his near-fatal accident on the sets of Coolie. While the nation's darling lay on his deathbed fighting for life, the Khud-Daar cabbie of this second hit with Ravi Tandon was driving the film towards box-office glory.

1982 - The films involving Prakash Mehra and Amitabh Bachchan usually revolved around ordinary people and ordinary day-to-day problems. The depiction albeit ranged from the angry young man in a film like Zanjeer to a petty criminal in a comedy like Hera Pheri to the Haryanvi country bumpkin in Namak Halaal. The story of Namak Halaal was loosely inspired from the true story of the 16th Century royal nursemaid, Panna Dhai, also known as Panna the Faithful Nurse.

1982 - The only time Amitabh Bachchan shared the screen with the legend Dilip Kumar. Shakti, released in 1982, was one of the last films of his angry young man era and also Salim-Javed's last film as a duo with Amitabh.

1982 - Amitabh's last film with director Hrishikesh Mukherjee was released on 5 March 1982, and had a repeat cast from the director's previous film Jurmana. Based on the 1975 Bengali film Ami Shey O Shakha, an Uttam Kumar classic based on Ashutosh Mukherjee's eponymous novel, Bemisal had Amitabh Bachchan playing a double role. Poignantly, the title of the last ever Amitabh Bachchan-Hrishikesh Mukherjee collaboration epitomizes the quality of their association and joint contribution.
A deserving end to their decade old relationship the film went on to complete a silver jubilee at the box-office and was declared a hit.
Mukherjee mentioned in an interview that, "On the day we were to shoot his last scene, he met with that fateful accident on the sets of Coolie so the scene was eventually shot after a gap of few months." Mukherjee was also the editor of Manmohan Desai's Coolie (1983).

1982 - A grand concert of Amitabh Bachchan had been organised in the Wembley Arena, London, having a capacity of 11,000, which had to be cancelled for Bachchan had met with serious injuries on the set of Coolie.
Amitabh returned to Wembley a year later to a rousing response.

1983 - Coolie, directed jointly by Manmohan Desi and Prayag Raaj, relased on 2 December 1983. The film opened to a fan frenzy, some even sleeping on pavements outside the theatres to watch their favourite star in the film which had nearly cost him his life. The scene of his accident was immortalised by the director with a freeze frame within the film during the sequence in which Bachchan meets with the accident. Coolie had a 75-week run at the box-office becoming one of the biggest hits of the year.

This was the first of Amitabh Bachchan's films with Rajnikanth, and their bonding continues after so many years. The producer of this super-hit film even launched his next film with the trio - Kamal Haasan, Rajnikant and Amitabh Bachchan but for some reasons the film was shelved.Interestingly, Bachchan has done many Hindi remakes of Rajnikanth's and Kamal Haasan's films, and they of his.

After multiple dual roles, Bachchan finally played a triple role – paired opposite Waheeda Rehman as the father and Zeenat Aman and Parveen Babi as the two sons.

This is Amitabh Bachchan's only film with Pramod Chakravorty. Chakravorty retained his lucky mascot Hema Malini and brought in Bachchan favourites Kalyanji-Anandji and Amjad Khan, but the film failed.

A major portion of the film was shot soon after his recovery from the accident in Goa and everybody was very emotional about him. He didn't show it but he was extremely vulnerable those days. — Randhir Kapoor
After the accident he resumed shooting with the Samandar me nahakar…song in Goa which explains why he looks leaner in the film. He was accompanied on the shoot by wife Jaya and children Shweta and Abhishek. Producer-director Ramesh Behl, friend of Jaya Bhaduri through Jawani Diwani and Dil Deewana was over protective about his star. The family bonding which began in Goa continues after 25 years, both personally and professionally.

This was Bachchan's first film with Sridevi, who at that point could not speak a word of Hindi. The film did not fare too well, despite the Andhaa Kaanoon director T. Rama Rao at the helm.
After a long gap, the rivalry between Bachchan and Rajesh Khanna was back in the news momentarily, as Khanna's Aaj Ka MLA and Inquilaab released at the same time and were made by South banners with similar story lines where in the hero takes on the system and comments on the political scenario.

1981-1983 - The years saw Amitabh's rise as a performer in stage shows, accompanied with the music directors Kalyanji-Anandji. Between 1981 and 1983, Amitabh did 25 such performances. Each set a new record. Amitabh's journey as a concert star began with nine shows―one each at Houston, New York, Toronto, Chicago and Detroit, and four in the West Indies. The response was phenomenal. The footfall at the Houston show, on a weekday, crossed 3,300―an unprecedented record! People drove from as far as Dallas to attend the concert. The show at Madison Square Garden, New York, broke Frank Sinatra's record of $100,000 collections with an impressive $125,000! Such was the craze that $50 tickets were sold in black for $60!

1983 - Under contract with Kirit Trivedi, Amitabh led several successful concerts abroad. In July 1983, he performed two days in the United Kingdom where the shows broke local records as well.
In October 1983, Bachchan became the first Asian to perform at Madison's main arena with a capacity of 22,000 people.
Trivedi and Bachchan's partnership completed a record 25 shows silver jubilee of successful international stage shows in 1983.

1983 - Amitabh had a solo 'Jidhar Dekhoon Teri Tasveer' in the film Mahaan and a duet with R. D. Burman in Pukar, 'Tu Maike Mat Jaiyo.'
1984 - Amitabh lent his voice for the track 'Jahan Chaar Yaar' with Kishore Kumar for Sharaabi.

1984 - The year of 1984 was a tumultous one in India's history. Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's assassination and subsequent pogroms sent the whole country into a state of frenzy. Amitabh Bachchan, a close family accquaintance to the Gandhis chose to stand by his childhood friend Rajiv Gandhi in this time of upheaval. He contested the Lok Sabha elections from the Allahabad constituency, his hometown, on a Congress ticket. This was Bachchan's first foray into the world of politics.
Contesting against Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna of the Lok Dal party, Amitabh emerged the winner with a decisive 1,88,000 votes.

1984 - Sharaabi was inspired by the film Arthur and Rabindranath Tagore's short story Samapti. In Sharaabi, Vicky played by Bachchan is an alcoholic who drinks out of loneliness and is scared of women, his only confidant being the character played by Om Prakash. Both the films turned out to be super-hits at the box-office.

1985 - Mard was Amitabh's last collaboration with Desai and released on 1 November 1985. The success of the film was a deserving end to the collaboration that lasted over 8 films, all of which were a perfect blend of Desai's unusual storytelling and Bachchan's larger than life persona and superstardom.

After the earlier shelved film from the South, Bachchan, Kamal Haasan and Rajnikanth finally did manage a film together, even if this was essentially a Kamal Haasan film with Bachchan and Rajnikanth in extended cameos. The jail sequence between Kamal Haasan and Amitabh Bachchan was shot inside a real jail in Bangalore. This is the only time three legendary superstars (Ranikant, Kamal Haasan and Amitabh Bachchan) came together. Such a phenomenal casting cannot happen again. — S. Ramanathan

1987 - V. P. Singh the then Defence Minister of the Rajiv Gandhi government had appointed an American detective agency Fairfax, to investigate the illegal stashing of foreign exchange in overseas banks by Indians. This investigation brought forward the name of Ajitabh Bachchan, Amitabh's brother. Ajitabh sued the Swedish newspaper for defamation charges and won damages in the United Kingdom in 1990.
The Bofors Scandal of 1987 between India and Sweden, brouught accusations of several politicans receiving kickbacks from the arms manufacturing company Bofors AB, including Amitabh Bachchan. Bachchan resigned from his seat in August 1987. The controversy had also affected the star's screen image as his popularity hit an all time low.
Bachchan never returned to politics.

It is the first and the last film to credit Jaya Bachchan with a story title.
This was a phase when Amitabh had joined politics and the general impression was that he would probably not be returning to films. Director Tinnu Anand recalls that on Monday morning as he was driving past Mumbai's Passport Office he saw a large crowd creating a traffic jam. On closer inspection Tinnu discovered that the crowd was a result of the advance booking of his film at the theatre Satyam situated in the lane behind the passport office!

Shahenshah and Gangaa Jamunaa Saraswathi marked a new phase for Bachchan heroines.
It established Meenakshi Seshadri, then a newcomer, into the top bracket. Contrary to what was reported in the media, the film made good collections. It is just that it didn't live up to the expectations of a Manmohan Desai-Amitabh Bachchan track-record and was therefore defined as a losing proposition by the trade pundits.

1989 - Prakash Mehra's last film with Amitabh, Jaadugar, released on 25 August 1989, close on the heels of Toofan. Both the films had Bachchan in the role of a magician. The similarity in the plot and a poorly done climax for Mehra's film led to the failure of both the films. Bachchan was also berated for not informing the producers and directors of both his films about the similarities in the two characters portrayed by him. This caused a fallout between Mehra and Bachchan, who did not collaborate in any films after this.

1989 - Amitabh had three singing credits in the year 1989, for the songs 'Don't Worry Be Happy' (Toofan, 1989) with Manhar Udhas, and the solos 'Padosan Apni Murghi' (Jaadugar, 1989) and Kitne Baazu (Main Azad Hoon, 1989).

I had taken great effort to alter my voice for the character but the initial feedback to the altered voice was negative and the distributors panicked so I had to over night redub the entire film in my original voice. But later, where ever I travelled for my shows, I was always requested to speak in the AGNEEPATH voice. — Amitabh Bachchan

The K.C. Bokadia potboiler proved to be a blockbuster and the song Gori hai kalaaiyaan became a huge hit. Inexplicably, Bappi Lahiri, who had also scored big hits with him earlier in Namak Halaal and Sharaabi, never worked with him again.

Kimi Katkar was the new generation replacement for his earlier Westernized heroines like Zeenat Aman and Parveen Babi. The film was a super hit and Kimi could have been a major star but she got married to photographer Shantanu Shorey and quit films.
The chart-topper Jumma chumma de de re-invented Bachchan as sexy even at 50. The song resurrected singer Sudesh Bhosle but also limited his career. For a long time he remained just Bachchan's voice until both Bachchan and he sought to find different alter egos.
Few people know that this Laxmikant-Pyarelal composition was based on a Mory Kante African number brought by Amitabh to the music composers

I had gone to narrate the subject to Amitabh and Jaya as a producer when they suggested that I should direct the film myself. I was not ready to take the plunge as yet so in a way they are responsible for making me a director. — Shashi Kapoor

Sudesh Bhosle who gave playback to all Amitabh songs in this film was introduced to Amitabh Bachchan by Shashi Kapoor at the recording. Amitabh recommended Sudesh to Romesh Sharma, producer of Hum and it was a co-incidence that Hum was released before Ajooba.
It is said that producer-director Shashi Kapoor was keen that Raj Kapoor (who had done a cameo in the song John Jani Janardhan in Naseeb with Amitabh) play the role of Amitabh's father but Raj Kapoor could not do it due to ill health, so Shammi Kapoor stepped in.
Ajooba was also Bachchan's first film with Dimple Kapadia.

Inderjeet tells the story of a police officer and his beloved who are planning to get married when duty demands him to arrest the father of his beloved for abetting the murder of a union leader. The beloved is gravely upset by his gesture and gets her father released through the recommendation of a minister. The incident creates a crack in the relationship and the lovers split. The hero devotes his life to bringing up the daughter of a friend and the heroine chooses to remain single. Decades later when the hero's foster daughter gets married and leaves for her honeymoon, her husband and she are murdered. It is time for the retired police officer to put on his working shoes and and seek revenge.

The title was a symbolic representation of transitions in the actor's career being Bachchan's last film with Ramesh Sippy, his last with writer Salim Khan and also his last with Meenakshi Sheshadri and Shashi Kapoor. It was as if Amitabh was shedding old baggage to embark on a new journey that comprised new professional relationships. He was hounded by the ghosts of Bofors and I was going through the worst phase in my life. The conflict shows on screen. — Ramesh Sippy

1991 - A one of its kind concert, Jumma Chumma, was launched with music composers Kalyanji-Anandji and had stars such as Amitabh Bachchan, Sridevi, Aamir Khan, Salman Khan, Neelam and Anupam Kher among others. Jumma Chumma released on 10 May 1991 in London. Bachchan reenacted his famous 'Mere Angne Mein' act for the concert.

This film marked an important curve in Amitabh Bachchan's career. It was the last of his trilogy with director Mukul S. Anand. There is an interesting story behind his character. It is said that many years ago, Bachchan was very moved by the character of Balraj Sahni in Kabuliwallah. Later, while shooting Zanjeer, he was as attracted by the character of Pran and determined that some day he would play a Pathan in his film.
The film was shot in Afghanistan, which would be an impossibility today.
After Kamal Haasan, Rajnikanth and Aravind Swamy who played the lead in Bachchan's home production Saat Rang Ke Sapne, this was yet another film with a southern co-star, Nagarjuna. After the film, Bachchan took a 5-year sabbatical from films.

1995 - Amitabh Bachchan launched his dream venture ABCL (Amitabh Bachchan Corporation Limited) merged with Jaya Bachchan's Saraswati Audiovisuals, which had previously produced the Hindi sitcom Dekh Bhai Dekh. The company diversified into film distribution, film production, music and other music events. The music label named Big B! distributed the music of Mani Ratnam's Bombay (1995) and Shekhar Kapur's Bandit Queen (1996).
Tere Mere Sapne released in 1996 marked ABCL's entry into Hindi film production. The film, including several newcomers, was declared a huge hit. The same year the company held the Miss World pageant in Bangalore on 23 November 1996. Getting the event to India was a huge task and it put the company in a lot of financial trouble.

Senior Superintendent of Police, Amar is determined to nab villain Goga who is responsible for making him an orphan. Goga dies in police custody and his son, Brijbhan vows to create havoc in the country through communal riots. In the chaos that follows, Amar shoots Brijbhan's henchmen and surrenders himself to the police after which Amar is served a death sentence. Fortunately, the rival gang leaders who instigated the communal violence have a change of heart and pledge to serve the country. Together, the three succeed in destroying the anti-social elements.

1997 - Produced by ABCL, the Amitabh Bacchan Corporation Pvt ltd. founded in 1995, Mrityudaata starring Amitabh Bachchan was his first comeback after a 5 year hiatus from the big screen. The film was a financial disaster owing to a ridiculous plot, poor dialogue and screenplay.

1997 - In 1997, Amitabh Bachchan featured in the album Aby Baby with Bally Sagoo and sang the songs 'Kabhi Kabhie' and 'Eer Beer Fatte.'
1999 - He also sang the song 'Patai Le Humka' for the film Lal Baadshah with Alka Yagnik.

The film had an army backdrop and a lot of official clearances were needed during the shoot.
Tinnu Anand had billed himself with his real name Virender Raj Anand but during the making of the film he developed a heart problem and was temporarily laid up. For those few days, Ajay Devgan executed the shots and Bachchan predicted he had the makings of a director.
Tinnu cast Junoon heroine Nafisa Ali as Amitabh's wife in the film.
Music director Aadesh Shrivastava was brought in to compose just one song, the super-hit Sona sona.

1998 - ABCL's next production was Bachchan starrer Major Saab, which too failed to perform well at the box-office The only success that year for Bachchan as an actor was David Dhawan's Bade Miyan Chhote Miyan, alongside Govinda. The film was a superhit and redeemed the actor's standing at the box-office to a certain extent.
Recurring major financial losses due to failed production ventures ABCL approached the Board of Industrial and Financial Reconstruction (BIFR) in March 1999.

1999 - Sooryavansham directed by E. V. V. Satyanarayana released on 21 May 1999, featuring the actor in a double role, his second in that year after K. C. Bokadia's Lal Badhshah. A remake of the 1997 Tamil film Suryavamsam, the film received positive reviews from the critics, with Amitabh's performance being specifically praised. The film performed well at the box-office and had an equally spectacular World TV premiere on the satellite channel Sony.

This was a joint effort on part of Amitabh Bachchan and Mehul Kumar to redeem the Mrityudaata fiasco, and to an extent they were successful. This is where Amitabh brushed shoulders with Tabu almost a decade before Cheeni Kum. It was also his first with brush with Nana Patekar, recognized as a temperamental actor.

2000 - Amitabh Bachchan reunited with the Yash Raj Films banner after 19 years, their last collaboration being Silsila (1981), for Mohabbatein directed by Aditya Chopra. Cast as the strict disciplinarian principal of the Gurukal Academy, Bachchan's portrayal was widely acclaimed providing a new path to the actor's career, now as a supporting but strong character presence in films.
Amitabh Bachchan in an interview mentioned, "I was on a long sabbatical and unable to decide what roles I should pick. Then one morning after a lot of deliberation I walked across to Yash Chopra's house and told him that I didn't have work and needed a job. he offered me this film." The film proved to be a game changer for the actor and possibly the start of a new innings of his acting career.

2000 - The year marked Bachchan's entry to television with the game show Kaun Banega Crorepati?, the Indian version of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? The show debuted on the television screens on 3 July 2000, turned fortunes for both Star TV, the broadcaster, and Amitabh. The actor has since hosted all the seasons of the show, barring the third season which was hosted by Shah Rukh Khan. The show catapulled Bachchan to household popularity once again.
Bachchan was honoured as Superstar of the Millennium (2000) by Filmfare.

2001 - After moderate success with Ek Rishtaa: A Bond of Love and Aks, Bachchan's biggest hit of the year was Karan Johar's family drama, Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, released on 14 December 2000. The film boasted an eminent star cast across three generations of a family with Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan reuiniting on screen after a long break, and prominent stars such as Shah Rukh Khan, Kajol, Hrithik Roshan and Kareena Kapoor. The film became one of the highest grossers of the decade and has accquired a classic status over the years as an icon of pop-culture for the Indian diaspora audience.

2001 - Amitabh Bachchan was awarded with the third-highest civilian honour, presented by the Government of India, the Padma Bhushan in 2001. The same year, he also became the first living Asian to be modelled in wax at Madame Tussauds, London.

2001 - The 2001 film Aks had Amitabh sing two songs, 'Bhala Bura' a solo and 'Ramleela' with Nandita Das and Kavita Mundra.

2002 - Amitabh appeared in the album 'Tera Chehra' by Adnan Sami in which he sang the track 'Kabhi Nai' with Sami.

2002 - The resurgent career of the actor provided him the opportunity of choosing roles with substance without being typecast. In 2002, his films included a stylised thriller Aankhen that had Bachchan playing the role of a vindictive bank manager planning a bank robbery with the help of three blind men. The film retained shades of the angry young man persona of the actor and proved to be a box-office hit.
The same year he also sang and appeared in a music video 'Kabhi Nahi' with Adnan Sami, produced by T-Series.

This time it was Rati Agnihotri co-starring with Amitabh Bachchan 18 years after Coolie. Two decades after Satte Pe Satta came this male bonding story. While Satte Pe Satta was a musical comedy this one was a dark thriller.
Incidentally this was Sanjay Dutt's first co-production and the senior star reciprocated by casting Dutt in his home production Viruddh a few years later.

2003 - The biggest highlight of the year was Ravi Chopra's Baghban, that paired Amitabh Bachchan with Hema Malini. Cast as the retired bank manager, Bachchan's heartfelt portrayal of an ageing father and his chemistry with Hema Malini touched the audiences heartstrings.
Bachchan's character's final speech in the film was penned down by writer and lyricist Javed Akhtar and the speech for Salman's character who plays his adoptive son was written by Salim Khan. It was considered as the last unofficial collaboration of the legendary duo Salim-Javed,who were creators of some of Bachchan's most iconic on-screen characters.

2003 - 'Aao Mil Ke Gaayen Aisa Gaana' for the film Armaan was sung with Udit Narayan, Mahalakshmi Iyer and Shankar Mahadevan.
For the film Baghban he sang three songs; 'Chali Chali' with Hema Sardesai and Aadesh Shrivastava, 'Holi Khele Raghuveera' with Sukhwinder Singh, Alka Yagnik and Udit Narayan and 'Main Yahan Tu Wahan' with Alka Yagnik.

There was outrage from fans all around against Bachchan doing this film. Though Bachchan later apologised to his well wishers for offending their sentiments he still maintains that the reactions were out of place and the film ought to have been taken in the spirit it was intended.
It is the first time probably after Inquilaab in the 80s that his film landed in serious trouble with the censors.

2004 - Amitabh Bachchan got linked to politics again after a gap of 15+ years after his wife Jaya Bachchan was elected as the Member of Rajya Sabha from the Samajwadi Party. Acclaimed politician and friend, Amar Singh belonging to the Samajwadi Party had helped the actor during the faliure of his production house ABCL (Amitabh Bachchan Corporation Limited). Bachchan appeared in advertisements and political campaigns of the party.

2004 - Amitabh Bachchan and Yash Chopra collaborated again after a long gap of 23 years for the Chopra directorial Veer Zara. The hit pair of Amitabh Bachchan and Hema Malini, after the success of Baghban released in the previous year, were cast in a special appearence as the guardians of Veer (character played by Shah Rukh Khan). Bachchan's portrayl as Chaudhary Sumer Singh was highly appreciated and so was his chemistry with Hema Malini. This would be the last collaboration between Chopra, who had limited his directorial ventures, and Bachchan, before the former's demise in 2012.

2005 - After a string of hits in 1978, Amitabh gave four mega-hits in the year 2005 with Black, Waqt: The Race Against Time, Bunty Aur Babli and Sarkar. Bachchan was wildly acclaimed for his performance as the 'teacher' Debraj Sahai in Black, which earned him his second National Award for Best Actor.

2005 - A review in IANS mentioned, "'The film actually belongs to Amitabh Bachchan. It's impossible to imagine any actor playing Debraj, the tutor of manic proportions raging into the darkness like a Shakespearean tragic hero. To say this is Bachchan's finest ever isn't enough. For, what he has done with his character in Black is to endow Indian cinema with a flavour of flamboyant excellence, unparalleled by anything we've seen any actor from any part of the world do or say … I say 'say' because the way Bachchan has used that well known baritone, has to be heard to be believed. Dropping his voice to a whisper, he raises it again to challenge destiny, and toast immortality."

2005 - Amitabh collaborated with his son twice in the year, first in Shaad Ali directorial Bunty Aur Babli with Abhishekh Bachchan and Rani Mukherji in the titural roles respectively. 'Kajra Re' song featuring Aishwarya Rai with Amitabh and Abhishek was a huge-hit sparking off unprecedented global frenzy!
The duo were seen again playing father and son in the Ram Gopal Verma political drama Sarkar, loosely inspired from the 1972 Francis Ford Cappola's film The Godfather, which itself is based on the novel of the same name by Mario Puzo.

2005 - Bachchan sang the jingle 'Oye Bubbly' for Pepsi Commercial.

2006 - Karan Johar directorial Kabhi Alvida Na Kehnaa, had Amitabh and Abhishek playing father-son duo again. The film dealing with themes of infedility didn't perform well at the box-office. Bachchan also starred in horror film anthology, Darna Mana Hai, in the segment directed by Ram Gopal Verma.

2006 - Ravi Chopra directorial Baabul was released on 8 December 2006 with Amitabh Bachchan, Hema Malini, Salman Khan, Rani Mukherjee and John Abraham in major roles. Taking a leaf from B. R. Chopra's 1956 hit Ek Hi Raasta, Baabul explored the concept of widow remarriage.
Amitabh was also conferred an honorary Docrorate of Arts by De Montfort University, Leicester, UK, for his contribution to the Indian film industry.

2006 - Ravi Chopra directorial Baabul had Bachchan lend his voice for the tracks 'Come On Come On' with Aadesh Shrivastava, Vishal Dadlani, Sonu Nigam and Ranjit Barot and 'Gaa Re Mann' with Kavita Krishnamurthy, Alka Yagnik, Kailash Kher, Sudesh Bhosle and Aadesh Shrivastava.

2007 - Amitabh starred in two films touching upon highly unconventional topics in Hindi cinema. Directed by Ram Gopal Verma, Nishabd released on 2 March 2007, exploring the complex relationship between a married middle-aged man and his daughter's friend. Inspired by Valdimir Nabokov's Lolita, Amitabh played the role of a 60+ photographer who falls in love with an 18 year old girl played by Jiah Khan. The film garnered extreme response from the critics with some hailing it as an extraordinary film while others panning the subject brutally.

2007 - Bachchan's next release of the year was R. Balki's Cheeni Kum starring him and Tabu. Yet another unusual romance the film showcased the story of a 64 year old chef Buddhadev Gupta falling for the 34 year old software engineer Nina Verma. The film did well at the box-office and the sparkling chemistry between Bachchan and Tabu was highly praised.

2007 - Ram Gopal Verma and Amitabh collaborated again in 2007 for the film titled Ram Gopal Verma Ki Aag, a remake of the actor's own blockbuster Sholay. The film was an absolute disaster with Amitabh in the role of the gangster, it is hailed as the most universally panned remake ever!

2007 - Bachchan sang a solo 'Rozanna' for Nishabd and duet 'Baatein Hawa' with Shreya Ghosal for Cheeni Kum.

2008 - Amitabh starred in Rituparno Ghosh's The Last Lear which is considered as one of his best performances ever by many. The film had its international premier at the Toronto Film Festival on 9 September 2007 and was released worldwide a year later on 12 September 2008. It won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in English that year.

2008 - Bhootnath, directed by Vivek Sharma had Amitabh Bachchan in the role of a friendly ghost. Released in 9 May 2008, the supernatural comedy became extremely popular among the young audiences. In 2014 Amitabh reprised his role as the ghost in the sequence of the film titled Bhootnath Returns.

2008 - Amitabh reprised his role as the patriarch is in the second instalment of Ram Gopal Verma directorial Sarkar, titled Sarkar Raaj. The film was screened at the Cannes Film Festival 2008, the New York Asian Film Festival and the 9th IIFA World Premiere, Bangkok.

2008 - Horror comedy film Bhootnath, with Bachchan in the titular role had two songs sung by the actor, 'Chalo Jaane Do' and 'Mere Buddy' with Armaan Malik.

2009 - R. Balki directorial Paa, had Bachchan playing arguably one of his most challenging roles. Dealing with a complex father-son relationship, Paa reversed the real life roles of Amitabh and Abhishek. Amitabh played the role of Abhishek's son Auro, suffering from a rare gentic condition caller progeria. The role won him his second National Award for Best Actor that year.

2009 - 'Genie Rap' and 'Ore Saawariya' with Sudesh Bhosle, Shreya Ghosal and Shaan were recorded for the film Aladdin.
In the same year Bachchan played the role of Auro, a child born with progeria in R. Balki's Paa for which he also sung the song 'Mere Paa.'

2011 - Bachchan recited the 'Hanuman Chalisa' for Aadesh Shrivastava's private album, with whom he had sung many songs in his earlier films.
He also sang the title track of his film Buddah Hoga Tera Baap.

2012 - In 2012 he sang the title track of the film Bol Bachchan starring his son, Abhishek Bachchan. The same year he also sang 'Ekla Cholo Re' a famous Bengali patriotic song written by Rabindranath Tagore and composed on the basis of Rabindra Sangeet for Sujoy Ghosh's film Kahaani.

2013 - Amitabh starred in his first Hollywood film, and his only one to date, The Great Gatsby directed by Baz Luhrmann. Amitabh received a lot of praise for his performance as Meyer Wolfsheim.
He also received the Global Diversity Award from the British Parliament in the same year.

2014 - Yudh directed by Ribhu Dasgupta was Bachchan's debut on TV screen as an actor. Released on 14 July 2014, the limited series had a star cast which included Sarika, Zakir Husain, Mona Vasu, Tigmanshu Dhulia, Kay Kay Menon, Kanika Dang and Nawazuddin Siddiqui.

2015 - Amitabh played the eccentric yet doting Bengali father to Deepika Padukone in Shoojit Sarkar's directorial Piku. His on-screen name Bhaskar Banerjee was the one used in Anand as well. Amitabh, as a quirky old hypochondriac delivered a heart-wrenching performance.

2015 - 'Piddly Si Baatein' from Shamitabh was sung by Amitabh Bachchan, Mohit Chauhan and Amitabh Bhattacharya.'
He also sang the track 'Atrangi Yaari' with Farhan Akhtar for the film Wazir, which became really famous.

2016 - Pink, a courtroom drama directed by Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury had Amitabh playing the role of lawyer who returns for one last battle to defend the three women who find themselves at the receiving end of male ire and social prejudices.

2017 - Bachchan lends his voice for 'Ganpati Aarti' in the film Sarkar 3, directed by Ram Gopal Verma.

2018 - In the film 102 Not Out Amitabh sang two solo songs, 'Waqt Ne Kiya' and 'Badumbaa.'

2020 - Amitabh collaborated with Shoojit Sarkar again in Gulabo Sitabo, becoming first Amitabh Bachchan film to be released directly on a streaming platform skipping theatrical release, in the wake of the 2020 Coronavirus pandemic outbreak.

2019 - The song 'Aukaat' for the film Badla was sung by Amitabh Bachchan, Clinton Cerejo and Amit Mishra.

2021 - The title track of the film Chehre was sung by Amitabh Bachchan.

2022 - In the year 2022, Amitabh was credited for 8 films of which two were guest roles (Fakt Mahilao Maate and Chup: Revenge of the Artist) and one film as the narrator (Radhe Shyam).

2024 - Amitabh's latest release is the Nag Ashwin directorial Kalki 2898 AD. A post-apocalyptic film set in the year 2898 AD, the film is inspired from Hindu scriptures with Bachchan portraying the role of Ashwatthama (the mythological son of sage warrior Dronacharya and an ally to the Kauravas during the battle of Mahabharatha).