The Crucifixion of St. Peter Painting by Caravaggio

To date, Amitabh Bachchan can be categorized as the most popular and successful hero of the Hindi films. His films are eagerly awaited and have created unprecedented records at the Box Office. He has been hailed as a ‘super star’ in India, whose very presence in a film ensured its success. Because of his immense popularity, he has been labeled ‘one man industry’.

Son of the renowned Hindi poet Harivanshrai Bachchan, he was born at Allahabad in 1943. Before joining films, he was working as an executive in a shipping firm at Calcutta. He used to take part in stage plays and gave up his lucrative job to satisfy his urge for acting. The famous writer-diretcor, Khwaja Ahmed Abbas, gave him a break in his film Saat Hindustani. Thereafter, he worked in Anand(1970)and Namak Haram (1973) with Rajesh Khanna, who was already dubbed as a ‘phenomenon’ on the Indian screen. His superb acting in these films made an impact on the audience. His career graph took an upward swing with the release of Janjeer in 1973. His image of an ‘angry young man’ registered an everlasting impression in the minds sectators. He never looked back, and went hopping from one success to another. He monopolized the Hindi cinema after proving his worth as an accomplished actor when pitted against Rajesh Khanna in Anand and Dilip Kumar in Shakti (1982).