The world of fame and entertainment is extremely uncertain as one moment, you seem to be invincible and the next moment, you could be out of work. Even your superstardom doesn’t promise any stability. But how one triumphs the seemingly insurmountable odds and failures in their life, is what cements their place in the history of entertainment and makes their journey inspirational. Amitabh Bachchan, who was, is and will always be the face of Bollywood, has had his own fair share of struggles before he reached where he is today! Losing a few years of his career to illness, failure and financial setbacks, Amitabh Bachchan bounced back every time, and even stronger!
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After almost four years of box-office failures, Amitabh Bachchan opted for a semi-retirement when he turned producer and started his business venture, Amitabh Bachchan Corporation, Ltd. (ABCL) in 1996. In 1997, when Big B made a comeback with the film, Mrityudata, produced by ABCL, it failed financially and critically. Then ABCL became the main sponsor of the 1996 Miss World beauty pageant, Bangalore, but lost millions and it was followed by legal battles and bankruptcy for Mr Bachchan. With Yash Chopra's Mohabbatein and Kaun Banega Crorepati, Big B rose to prominence once again and since then, there has been no looking back for the actor, even at the age of 78!
Amitabh Bachchan's actor-son, Abhishek Bachchan recalls why he left his studies and dropped out of college during their phase of the financial crisis. In an interview with YouTuber, Ranveer Allahbadia, Abhishek spoke about that time when he left his college at Boston University to help Mr Bachchan in their venture, ABCL. Abhishek said, "Well, truth be told, I left university -- I was studying in Boston University. I had declared my major as liberal arts, and then I majored in performing arts. And I left my education because my father was going through this really rough time, financially. He had started this business called ABCL. I don't think I was qualified to help him in any which way, but I just felt that as a son, I needed to be around my father, and help in whatever way. So, I left my college and came back. I started helping him in his company."
In an interview with Mid-Day, Amitabh Bachchan had once spoken about the time when he went to Yash Chopra, asked him for work and how he repaid his debt of Rs 90 crores. Big B had said, "There was a sword hanging on my head all the time. I spent many sleepless nights. One day, I got up early in the morning and went directly to Yash Chopraji and told him that I was bankrupt. I had no films. My house and a small property in New Delhi were attached. Yashji listened coolly and then offered me a role in his film Mohabattein. I then started doing commercials, television and films. And I am happy to say today that I have repaid my entire debt of Rs 90 crore and am starting afresh."
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Amitabh Bachchan never leaves a chance to express how proud he is of Abhishek Bachchan and often gives proofs of how junior B is more like a friend to him. To mark Abhishek's 45th birthday in February 2021, Big B had posted a collage of two throwback pictures with the caption, "I lead him once... holding his hand... he leads me now holding my hand." In the first picture from Abhishek's childhood, Mr Bachchan can be seen leading his son, holding his hand and the second photo was a recent one, which showed the reverse. In March, Big B had dedicated an appreciation post for Abhishek and in a heartwarming caption, he had written, "When your Son starts wearing your shoes... and tells you which path to take... he is no longer your Son... he becomes your friend... All the best buddy... remember... WHTCTW."
In an interview with Siddharth Kannan, Abhishek Bachchan had spoken about the time when he had started questioning himself and the time, when he felt that his decision to pursue acting was a mistake. Abhishek had said, "To fail on a public platform is very difficult. There was no social media back then, but I read via media that some were abusing me while some said that I do not know acting. At one point in time, I felt it was my mistake that I came into the industry as whatsoever I was trying, it was not working. I went to my dad and said maybe I am not made for this industry." Revealing the advice that his father, Amitabh Bachchan had given him, Abhishek continued, "'I never brought you up to be a quitter. Every morning you have to wake up and fight for your place under the sun. As an actor, you are improving with every film.'"
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On the professional front, Amitabh Bachchan has a series of films like Chehre, Jhundh, Brahmastra and Butterfly in his kitty.
