What is written below
is the culmination of several months work, it has been subject to editing,
changes and endless scrutinizing and has become a route to self-discovery. What
is written below was dreamt with the hopes that it will be read by You, Mr. Bachchan, and
perhaps will help accomplish the goal which I shall convey as I write this.
We
love Amitabh Bachchan because…
1.
Through
his movies, starting with Zangeer in
particular, he taught us what doing the right thing meant, and how to be
honorable to not only your family, your traditions and your community, but also
how to find honor within yourself.
2.
His
booming voice, when delivering a dialogue like the famous one in the temple in Deewar never fail to send chills down
our spine, making the character more palpable for the viewer.
3.
He
gave us a character like Vijay Varma, who is so completely torn in a world
where black and white way of thinking cannot and does not exist, yet in this
world filled with so many shades of gray, Vijay shows us where we should lead
ourselves.
4.
Songs like “mere angne main” or “come on- come
on” will happily get stuck in anyone’s head for a long time, but the singer
will never complain of their internal jukebox’s song selection.
5.
His
song “rozana” never fails to make me stop and find myself weeping at the
heartache that I hear coming through the speakers of the car as I listen to it
on my way to or from work/school, or through my headphones.
6.
He,
for the past 28 years, has welcomed his Sunday well-wishers with a smile and
appreciation for their love, support and adoration, when other actors would
have shunned such an outpouring of emotion from their fans.
7.
He
gave us characters like Padshah Khan from Khuda
Gawah, and having their inner strength become examples for the viewer, and
for embodying a Patthan who honors their promises with all their might, no
matter what the cost.
8.
Showing
us his version of the Godfather in Sarkar and reminding each and every one
of us the diversity that lies within his abilities as in actor, and making his
Subhash Nagre an embodiment of pure power.
9.
Having
gone through an experience and an illness after the infamous Coolie accident, and coming out the
other side stronger and better for having gone through the experience.
10. Mr. Bachchan practices what he
preaches. And by this I mean that through his blog, he always tells his beloved
Ef to always view obstacles and trials and hardships as a learning experience.
He has been practicing this very principle for the past few decades.
11. He is a pillar of strength, an
endless well of experience, knowledge, and an almost unholy strength to
persevere that, to fans like myself, are an ideal to live up to. His
willingness to teach these values to those who listen to him, make him that
much more admirable.
12. When experiencing a personal
hardship, fans can turn to his movies like Bade
Miyan, Chote Miyan and lose themselves in the colorful music and story of
the movie and not worry about the dark reality that surrounds them once the
movie is over.
13. He engrosses each and every
single of his viewers so completely into his characters: he truly brings
something for everyone. Physical strength for the young men, mental strength of
the wizened men. Expressions of pure adoration for his leading lady that
creates swooning figures from females of all ages, and touches every woman’s
heart with his sincerity.
14. He played Vicky in Sharaabi, a character I treasure with
all my heart for the ache in his heart and the gold that pours from his pocket
as his heart pumps goodness. Vicky stands as an ideal in so many ways I think,
that society as a whole should model and mold itself to understand why
Vickybabu’s lesson is so significant.
15. Not only do Mr. Bachchan’s characters resonate
through different cultures, but he himself blurs cultural lines and allows
non-Indians to come to love and respect him as much as any native Indian. I
discount my own story, being from the Middle Eastern heritage and having more
exposure to Hindi movies. But I bring forth my best friends story: an American
born and raised yet he exudes the same excitement at the prospect of Sholay in 3D as any other Amitabh
Bachchan fan.
16. Through this enthusiasm he has
created in me, and this desire to see and absorb all his 189 movies (according
to IMDB), I have started to learn Hindi, and have started to progressively get
better at watching a movie without English subtitles being needed desperately.
17. An Assyrian-Catholic born in Iran, into a
regime who could and would not accept my family’s religion, and coming to
regard America as my home, through Amitabh Bachchan’s movie, and the influence
through his movies, I found myself slowly begin to make amends with the country
and a part of the world I was born into, but so often resented. For this
reconciliation between my present self and my past, this burgeoning pride in being
of Middle Eastern descent, I am forever grateful.
18. Again, this spell he casts over
anyone who sees his movies create the opportunity to learn more. When, in his
movies, you see him performing some kind of prayer, a ritual, natural curiosity
drives one to Google and you ultimately find out things that were so foreign to
you before watching a movie. For example, in Agneepath, when Vijay’s character walks into the sea holding the
figure of Ganesha, I had no idea the festival was called Ganesha Chaturthi, or
what it all meant. But I now understand the festival and find it incredibly
beautiful.
19. Unexposed as I am to Indian
literature, through Mr. Bachchan’s open and appropriate adoration for his
father, I have discovered works like “Madhushalla” and although I lack the
language skills to feel the full power of his poetry, I am mesmerized by the
depth of the words that are so powerful, they do not lose themselves in
translation.
20. Being a connoisseur of movies,
and shamelessly so, never before have movies ever made me reflect internally as
movies like Inquilaab, which I
consider highly underrated, Agneepath,
Sharaabi and most prominently, Deewar.
The list of movies that make me actually think is longer, these are just those
that have permanently altered or allowed me to be aware of other ways of
thinking. Again, the exposure of the shades of gray throughout life is a theme
in the mentioned movies that I have taken to heart.
21. In Do Aur Do Paanch, not only did I learn that 2+2 does not equal 5, I also found myself breathless
with laughter and in awe of Mr. Bachchan’s ability to do lighthearted comedy
and bring in such ferocious intensity.
22. His Jan Jaani Janardhan’s selfless act and loyalty in the name of
friendship and love, an inspiration for the viewer to model, this true friend.
23. His fast talking Genius in Aladin never fails to make the viewer
laugh, but Mr. Bachchan’s incomparable skills as an actor presents an
interesting contrast in the darkness he lets slip through the character.
24. Jai in Sholay a quiet, unassuming character who embodies friendship,
gifting me my own best friend through our love for this incredible movie.
25. The fact that after the Coolie accident, Amitabhji continued
filming the movie from where he left off and continued the filming of the
movie, only speaks to the character of the man, a lesson in perseverance for
the world.
26. Despite all his fame, all his
accomplishments, and all the love that is displayed for him, Mr. Bachchan’s
ability to keep his humility, to stay humbled and amazed by the attention and
affection he receives, is a lesson for the world. Mr. Bachchan’s ability to
stay humble is beautiful and, in turn, humbling for his fans.
27. He has gifted the world with
Abhisheck Bachchan whose beautiful and bubbly personality is truly a light in
the world.
28. Every time Amitji cries in any movie,
the world stops and cries with him.
29. In Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham, he develops and grows and admits his
mistakes as a father, as an elder. This for me shows that no matter how long it
takes, one must admit mistakes.
30. He is equally terrifying and
heartwarming in Aks.
31. Vijay in Don makes me want to go to Banares and dance.
32. Through my love for Amitji’s movies,
I learned Banares is another word for Veranasi.
33. He makes me wish and plan to
visit Mumbai, Alahabad and the state of Rajasthan.
34. Through Mard, the British Raj’s cruelty and their mistreatment of Indians,
was put into perspective for me as a historian.
35. Through all his writings, all his
movies, all his actions, I have learned religious tolerance on a different
level of understanding.
36. Even after decades, his Vijju in Bhuddah is still the greatest, baddest
mother lover in the world.
37. He taught the world that doing
the right thing isn’t always easy. But you must take the hard road to keep your
honor.
38. In his three character movie Mahaan, the distinction made between the
father and two sons is admirable and not easy to pull off successfully as
Amitji.
39. Through admiration for him, I’ve
become an expert on the geography of India. I know the states and their layouts
as well as I know the United States.
40. He made me fall in love with
India, but through Inquilaab, I also
know and understand the country’s not perfect, but that does not stop it from
being beautiful Hindustan.
41. His Shahenshah is a bigger badass then Batman.
42. He displays respect and love for
his fans, unlike any other celebrity I’ve heard about.
43. Mr. Bachchan understands the
principle of doing good deeds without having to make a public display of it.
44. He makes being unusually tall
with really long legs a good thing, something to be proud of!
45. The way he runs is always a wonder to watch,
makes the viewer want to stand up and run down the platform in slow motion.
Truly a wonderful thing to behold.
46. Despite being one of the most
poetically inclined, philosophical, thoughtful writers I’ve had the privilege
of reading, through his blog and tweets, yet his refusal to acknowledge this
talent again highlights a humility I can only hope to someday achieve.
47. His character from Department is one of the craziest
badasses I’ve seen portrayed in cinema.
48. Arjun Singh’s revelation into the
English language and the weirdness of the language that becomes apparent to bi
and multilinguals
49. He is the only actor I can forgive
for playing and pulling off characters named “Tiger”, because somehow, the name
fits him and his bigger than life personality.
50. His Babu character in Satta pe Satta scares the hell outta me,
but the ending, Amitabhji never lets you hate the character for long. Instead,
you find yourself cheering for him to find and complete his love story. The
intensity of the character of Babu is to be commended.
51. His ghost in Bhoothnath is amazingly complex and manages to go from a pretty
terrifying ghost to a very sexy old man in one fell swoop.
52. For gifting disillusioned fans
like me with a movie like Khakee,
because after watching so many movies, having been born in a movie going
culture and movie loving world, it is hard to find a movie that keeps you on
the edge of your seat. My goal of watching Mr. Bachchan’s every movie led me to
watch Khakee and I found myself
screaming and yelling at the television.
53. In every movie, I learn something
new about India, or Indian culture, mentality and philosophy, and sometimes I learn
about the history of the country, as I did from Eklavya.
54. For making movies like Nisabd that make you question your own
thoughts about love and the various forms of it, and the procession of age and
how to handle what life throws at you. The movie made me uncomfortable, because
it was a story, a setting that was foreign and unacceptable in so many aspects
of society. But through Amitji, I believe I have a new perspective on what love
can and should mean.
55. As stated, my goal of watching
every movie that starred Amitaji has led me to wonderful, incredible stories
like Shootout At Lokhandwalla, and
through my tendency of wanting to always know the story behind the story, I once
again became educated on Indian news and politics and how the system works. This
cross-cultural training I have been receiving has, I believe, made me more perceptive.
56. For simply staring in Sarkar and Sarkar Raj, and giving us Subhash Nagre.
57. He played Debraj Sahi, and I believe
that character from Black needs no
further introduction, nor praise. Those who have seen this incredible piece of
cinema will agree with me and lend their voices to my praise for Mr. Bachchan
for Debraj Sahi.
58. He created magic with Dharmendra
in Sholay, Chupke Chupke and Ram Balra, giving us, the avid viewer, a
friendship and brotherhood on screen that is incomparable, and leaves fans like
myself wishing that Amitji and Dharamji had or will make more movies together.
59. Thanks to the song “chal mere
bhayii” from Naseeb, my sisters and
or my best friend and I can sing it to each other to signal that we had a bad
day, without having to put to words that we had a bad day. We instead have
started singing.
60. Every day, when I’m driving home
from work, I can blast “Jumma Chumma” from Hum
in the car and sing along to my heart’s content, and ignore the fact that I go
to work Saturday mornings!
61. His Badshah Khan from Khuda Gawah is one of the most classic
lovers in any movie or story I’ve heard or seen.
62. I can stutter “s-s-steady” and my
family, or those who have seen Amar Akbar
Anthony, will understand what I am talking about.
63. He proved that politics is a game
that has no room for decent, honorable men. It is no place for those who wish
to enter the spectrum to do good for their country.
64. Mr. Bachchan never seems to shy
away from admitting mistakes and errors in public. What a beautiful thought
that is, no?
65. For giving a heart stopping
performance in Kaala Patthar.
66. For the diamond he played Lawaaris.
67. Because his character in Khuud-Daar teaches honor and principles
that we always forget in the modern world, where money is everything, and
values have no weight.
68. For asking for non-veg jokes in Bunty Aur Bubli.
69. Because he is so talented, you
forget he is the actor who is portraying Auro in Paa with such incredible ease and grace. He creates such an unforgettable
character, again, stepping out of his own bounds, his own comfort zones to make
his audience think and consider.
70. For simply being Amitabh
Bachchan. And no one else.
I wish you a very happy birthday sir, and hope this labor of love has accomplished the purpose it was started for: With
all that I have read in your blog, where you share your thoughts and feelings so freely and sweetly, I feel a constant turmoil in Your writing, as if You are
seeking to discover why so many people seek Your attention, Your approval.
People like myself for example.
And I feel as if I have taken on the responsibility
to attempt to explain our love for you.
But I realize that I can only justify
myself to You, and perhaps those rare few out there, members of Your E.F.
perhaps or one of Your 3 million followers on Twitter, may be in my situation,
and may share my seasonings for seeking Your attention so diligently and
wholeheartedly.
I know I am lacking in words, in knowledge, in experience to completely convey why you are so important to so many people around the world. But I hope this list of reasons can give you a small idea.
I am also poor, and too insignificant to believe I could physically present you a gift for your birthday. So I give you my love, my respect, and my hopes for everlasting happiness. And my prayer that you forever reside under the Grace of God.
I ask your forgiveness in all that is lacking here.
Love always,
Ishtar...California se eka bagil larki
 |
The crazy student in question
|
The movie is the Desi version of A Star is Born but, as always, the Desi
version outshined the Hollywood version. It centers on the character of Subir “Beetu”
Kumar, India’s most famous and beloved singer, as personified by Amitji, and
his wife, Uma Kumar (Mrs. Bachchan) who begins to gain more fame and
recognition as a singer then her husband. The movie is a wonderful mixture of
extremely heart-melting romantic moments between the future Bachchan couple,
woven with magical songs performed by Lata Mangeshkar, Kishore Kumar and
Mohammed Rafi, and a story line that accomplishes what it sets out to.
