Decades after the successes of Amitabh Bachchan’s films like ‘Sholay’ and ‘Deewar’, the revelation that the superstar felt he wasn’t the right fit to play the ‘Angry Young Man’ sounds surprising. To think that anyone other than Amitabh Bachchan—who has over time epitomized this persona—could have created it seems almost unthinkable. In a conversation with IFP, veteran screenwriter turned lyricist Javed Akhtar revealed that Big B had doubts about his casting in the blockbuster ‘Zanjeer’, the film that established him as the ‘Angry Young Man’ of 1970s Bollywood.

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Recalling the incident, Javed Akhtar shared, “I went to Amitabh Bachchan’s place and said, ‘Let me give you the script of ‘Zanjeer’ and introduce you to the producer. Don’t negotiate any terms. Just do the film in whatever way possible.’ He requested a narration. After I gave it, I distinctly remember him looking at me in awe and asking, ‘Do you think I can pull off this role?’ Until then, he had only played roles like poet, doctor, and writer. He said, ‘Can I do this?’ That’s when I assured him, ‘Nobody can do it better than you.'”

Watch Akhtar’s conversation with IFP here:

The celebrated screenwriter duo Salim-Javed conceived the idea of the ‘Angry Young Man’ for Prakash Mehra’s ‘Zanjeer’ (1973). Initially, when Prakash approached all the leading men of Hindi cinema, they all declined the role, given that it deviated from the prevalent archetype of the romantic hero, particularly during the era of superstar Rajesh Khanna.

 

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Moreover, not just Amitabh Bachchan, but filmmaker Prakash Mehra himself was apprehensive about casting Big B. Amitabh, who had debuted in the late 1960s and gained notice for films like ‘Anand’ (1971), had faced several subsequent flops. However, as history witnessed, ‘Zanjeer’ turned out to be a blockbuster, solidifying Bollywood’s ‘Angry Young Man’—Amitabh Bachchan. Following its success, Senior Bachchan starred in several more Salim-Javed films including ‘Sholay’, ‘Deewar’, and ‘Trishul’, among others.

In related news, Amitabh Bachchan was last seen in the blockbuster ‘Kalki 2898 AD’ and is slated to appear next in his Tamil debut, ‘Vettaiyan’, and the courtroom drama ‘Section 84’. Meanwhile, Javed Akhtar has penned a new script set to be directed by his daughter, Zoya Akhtar.