The three turning points in Amitabh Bachchan’s career were eventuated within three years of one another. Prakash Mehra’s ‘Zanjeer’ which made him an overnight superstar, came in 1973, in 1975 Ramesh Sippy’s ‘Sholay’ and Yash Chopra’s ‘Deewaar’ rewrote cinematic history by redefining the concept of mass entertainment by bringing in a poise and sophistication never seen in the action genre before.
“It is interesting you mention poise and sophistication. When these two films (‘Sholay’ and ‘Deewaar’) were released, no one saw them in that light. Perceptions of cinema change with every generation” says Amitabh Bachchan during his exclusive conversation with ETimes.
He added that the team never saw the abiding success of ‘Deewaar’ coming.
“We never planned it to make ‘Deewaar’ what it is. No one can plan a classic. Guru Dutt didn’t tell himself, ‘All right, let’s make a classic,’ when he decided to make ‘Kagaz Ke Phool.’ Not that I’m comparing ‘Deewaar’ to any of the classics,” chuckles the mega-star.
But surely he must have sensed the uniqueness of the scenes being shot. “What I sensed was the extraordinary writing. It was no coincidence that both Sholay and Deewaar and earlier Zanjeer were all written by Salim-Javed. They were indeed a force to reckon with.”
“Indeed. What they brought to Hindi cinema through their writing was unique, and incomparable. Personally, Salim-Javed’s writing made it very easy for me to play my characters. They wrote with such clarity and precision, the film would come alive on paper,” elaborated Mr. Bachchan.
Further, when asked, where would he place ‘Deewaar’ in his repertoire, he replied “One doesn’t sit and think of these things. But yes, ‘Deewaar’ ranks very high among audiences. The dialogues are iconic. But let me clarify that the most-mouthed dialogue from the film. ‘Mere paas meri maa hai’ was mouthed by my co-star and colleague and dear friend Shashi Kapoor.”
He was all praise for Shashi Kapoor. “It is easy to undermine the quieter performance. But I don’t think ‘Deewaar’ would have been the film it is if it wasn’t Shashi’s understated performance.”
“And Nirupaji, she was central to the conflict between the brothers. She was just marvelous. Every actor, Satyen Kappu, Iftikhar, Madan Puri, and Alankar Joshi, who played the childhood portion of my character. ‘Deewaar’ wouldn’t have been the film it is without them,” said the living legend with humility.