Amitabh Bachchan attends a party for film “Piku” in Mumbai, May 17. (Press Trust of India)
Amitabh Bachchan attends a party for film “Piku” in Mumbai, May 17. (Press Trust of India)

Bollywood Megastar Amitabh Bachchan shared few interesting anecdotes with fans, May 19, from his hit 1981 film “Sharaabi,” which turned 31, on May 14. A PTI report.

Amitabh Bachchan, the 72-year-old actor, whose portrayal of an alcoholic in the film is considered a benchmark for a drunkard’s role by actors even today, revealed the idea of the movie was conceived while he and director Prakash Mehra were traveling over the Atlantic Ocean.

“It’s 31 years of ‘Sharaabi’… Goodness feels like just the other day we were on the World Tour of 1983, the very first of its kind for the industry and having performed in almost 10 cities in U.S. and London, flying to Trinidad & Tobago from NYC, when Prakash Mehra also traveling with me, suggests we should do a film based on a father-son relationship where the son is an alcoholic!!

“So the seed of the film was sown over the Atlantic Ocean, about half way in the air at 35,000 feet,” he wrote in his blog.

Amitabh Bachchan in a scene from "Sharabi."
Amitabh Bachchan in a scene from “Sharabi.”

A teetotaler in real life, Bachchan wanted to perfect the act of an alcoholic on-screen so he suggested Mehra to have short dialogues because a person takes time to speak in the inebriated state.

“A major observation was made by me after the first day of the shoot. I told Prakash Ji, since my character is intoxicated for most of the film, and since a drunk takes a lot more time to say his dialogues, if the dialogues were going to be long and lengthy, then he should be prepared for a 5-hour film, for, it would take time for me to say those lines since they were going to be measured and in a state of intoxication. Point noted. And the scenes were shortened and made amenable for the situation,” Bachchan wrote.

The “Piku” star was seen with his left hand in his pocket throughout the film and while it became a style statement and was followed by his fans, Bachchan said it was actually out of helplessness.

“It was also during the making of ‘Sharaabi’ that a Diwali bomb blew up my left hand. The dates had been allocated and the shoot could not be canceled, so I went ahead in order not to disturb or cause delay. The hand had been reduced to pulp..,” he added.

Describing the story behind the fight sequence, which he choreographed, Bachchan wrote, “Many impromptu suggestions used to come up in those days. They do even now, but I think then they were more last minute and unprepared! Like the fight sequence in the bar when I take on the guys that had stolen my watch and chain etc. That was choreographed by me… Fun times!!!”

Hitting the Gym for His Next Role

Mumbai, May 20 (PTI) – Megastar Amitabh Bachchan, known for going the extra mile to prepare for his character, is nowadays sweating it out for an upcoming film.

He needs to get in shape for the project, whose details have been kept under wraps.

“The work out goes well. The difference shall hopefully be of notice by another 3 months. That is a long time to wait for body development. Many seek reason or query me about this sudden gym routine and why it should be written about today … well… all these days!

“The reason is not as complicated as many would have me imagine. They imagine that something is wrong and is now under medical treatment. Nothing medical at all. It’s just that I wish to have some semblance of a refined body and one that shall be of some assistance to me during one of my future film projects,” Bachchan wrote on his blog.