The Indian film industry has been producing movies since 1913, long before Bollywood was coined. Its films are known all over the world for their distinctive visual style, elaborate dance numbers, and unique settings.
To the outsiders, Bollywood films have become a bit of a joke – films that don’t take themselves, or any subject, thoughtfully. They stick to a staid and predictable formula when developing their plots and characters. In reality, this couldn’t be further from the truth.
There isn’t a genre of film that Bollywood hasn’t touched, from romance to drama, thriller to horror. In fact, according to Oprahdaily, modern Bollywood movies – known as masala movies – will incorporate elements from each genre, in the way a masala curry mixes different spices. This is a thoroughly modern Bollywood, and the rest of the world has started to take notice.
Bollywood Actors
Because the Bollywood film industry is so prolific – producing 2,000 movies a year, which is more than Hollywood – it needs access to a large talent pool. Many famous names in Indian film got their big breaks working on Bollywood movies, and some are now beginning to enter Hollywood as well.
One of the biggest names to come out of Bollywood is Amitabh Bachchan. His career has so far spanned six decades, also making it one of the longest. However, his name won’t mean much to those who haven’t seen a Bollywood movie, News18 reported he has only made one appearance in a Hollywood film – a cameo in 2014’s The Great Gatsby.
Biography
Amitabh Bachchan was born in 1942 in Allahabad and moved to Bombay upon completion of his education. His career started in theatre before he made his film debut in 1969, but it wasn’t until 1973 that he shot to stardom.
Bachchan was cast as the lead role in Zanjeer, a violent crime film that was having trouble finding a leading man because the persona was so far removed from the traditional romantic lead of many mainstream Bollywood movies. But for Bachchan, this was genius casting and soon established his reputation as the Angry Young Man of Bollywood movies.
Throughout the 1970s Bachchan continued to be in great demand and starred in a wide variety of Bollywood movies covering all different genres. Bachchan continued to play the role of the angry young man, a righteous hero fighting a corrupt system, but also played romantic leads, starred in comedies, and a couple of dual roles, including in 1979’s The Great Gambler.
Unlike most of Bachchan’s movies, The Great Gambler was not an instant success, rather it has achieved cult status amongst subsequent generations of Bollywood fans. Today’s thriving gambling industry and online sites such as 888Poker have renewed interest in gambling films, and Bachchan’s performances as both a gambler who unwittingly wins plans for a military laser and the secret agent in charge of finding him before the gangsters do, have been delighting fans all over again.
Biggest Roles and Awards
Zanjeer put Bachchan on the map and got him a nomination for Best Actor at the Filmfare Awards. However, he didn’t win until four years later for his role in Amar Akbar Anthony, an action-comedy about three brothers adopted into wildly different families.
Box Office success continued through the 1970s and 80s until an on-set injury while filming Coolie (1983) nearly ended not only Bachchan’s career but his life. After a lengthy recovery, he became disenchanted with the movie scene, and most of his movies flopped.
After spending five years in semi-retirement, producing more movies than he acted in, Bachchan burst back onto the scene in 2001 with an award-winning performance in Mohabbatein. He played the antagonist pitting fear against love and picked up a Critics Choice Bollywood Award. Now the first choice to play fathers, mentors, and family figureheads, Bachchan’s career ignited once more.
Critical acclaim continued to follow, with more awards for Black (2005), Piku (2015), and the legal drama Pink (2016) amongst others. In 2010 he was awarded the Asian Film Awards Lifetime Achievement Award and in 2013 Big Star Entertainment Awards labeled Bachchan its Star of the Millennium.
Getting into Bollywood Movies
For anyone looking to check out Bachchan’s back catalog of movies, it has never been easier. Popular global streaming sites have taken notice of their Indian customers and begun stocking a good selection of Bollywood movies. Classic hits and new releases can be found on the online app Filmywap which can be downloaded via Imnepal for anyone unwilling to pay subscription charges.
The best thing about Bollywood movies is that each film contains so many diverse themes that there is something to appeal to every viewer. Even dramas and thrillers still have the traditional musical numbers and sweet love stories that are trademarks of the industry.
In Conclusion
Critics and fans alike all agree that Amitabh Bachchan has made a fantastic contribution to Indian films. And with a further nine movies already in the pipeline, he isn’t done yet. Calling Bachchan the most remarkable Bollywood actor of all time certainly doesn’t seem like an overstatement.
