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Big B is an icon who clearly needs no introduction. However, as the Bollywood stalwart turns 81 today, we take a look at some of his priceless contributions to Indian cinema. While it’s a tough call, which outta these are your favourites?
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Jai, SholayOne of Bollywood’s biggest blockbusters of all time, Sholay saw Indian cinema’s angry young man play Jai, an outlaw, who clearly won the audiences over with his charisma and prowess.As far as the storyline goes, Jai is tasked with a mighty challenge—nabbing Gabbar Singh (Amjad Khan), a notorious dacoit—by retired police office (Sanjeev Kumar). While he’s accompanied by Veeru (Dharmendra) to carry out the mission successfully, the riveting narrative is peppered with the right mix of humour, suspense, entertainment, powerful dialogue delivery and stellar acting.
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Inspector Vijay Khanna, ZanjeerWhile Bachchan has a successful string of movies to his credit, there’s no refuting how Zanjeer happens to be one of his biggest hits of all time. A true-blue Bollywood action crime, the movie saw the veteran don the hat of Inspector Vijay Khanna, a righteous cop who decided to take matters into his own hands when he begins to view things from an unbiased perspective. With epic dialogues and catchy music, where’s the lie when we say Vijay Khanna set the bar high.
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DonMillennials and Gen Z’s might be gushing over SRK and Ranveer Singh as the new age Dons. But, we’d like to take a moment to remind you that Amitabh Bachchan essayed and slayed the role as Don way before our times. While the stereotypical baddie might seem passe now, there’s no taking away from the fact that the OG Don aka Bachchan Sr. set new benchmarks for anti-heroes with this 1978 blockbuster. Don is reportedly one of the highest-grossers of 1978.
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Vijay Dinanath Chauhan, AgneepathEqual parts action and family drama, Agneepath follows the life of Vijay Dinanath Chauhan, a young man who avenges the untimely demise of his father. Torn between revenge and unconditional love for his mother, wife and sister, the movie chronicles Vijay’s pursuit of justice against all odds. Given how the movie initially attracted major flak for altering Bachchan’s voice, the movie eventually managed to garner widespread mass acclaim. And, Vijay Dinanath Chauhan happens to be one of his most iconic roles to date.
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Vijay Kumar Srivastava, ShahenshahUnless you’ve been living under a rock all your life, there’s no way you’d have missed this iconic dialogue from Shahenhah by the Shahenshah himself: “Rishtey mein to hum tumhare baap hote hai ... naam hai Shahenshah”. The role saw him play Vijay Kumar Srivastava, a vigilante with dual sides to his personality and a clevel modus operandi that helps him nab criminals.
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Debraj Sahai, BlackTouted as one of Bachchan’s best roles in the past decade, Black documents the life of Michelle McNally (Rani Mukerji), a visually and hearing-impaired young woman, and how the entry of Debraj Sahai, a teacher (Bachchan) brings a ray of hope into her realm of darkness. While their bond strengthens over time, things end on a heart-breaking note as Sahai slides into senility towards the end.
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Auro, PaaSr. Bachchan plays a 70-year-old with the mental agility of a 12-year-old who lives with his mom(Vidya Balan), who has a past. While Vidya tries to keep Auro away from a dark secret, reality eventually strikes and Auro finally meets his estranged dad, Amol (Bachchan Jr.) Since life can be stranger than fiction, Auro forges a deep friendship with Amol, and that sets the tone for the rest of the movie.
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Deepak Sehgal, PinkOne of the biggest ‘woke’ movies of our times, Pink ticked all the right boxes as far as letting out a rather important message—where “no means no”—goes. Bachchan plays Deepak Sehgal, a defence lawyer who goes the extra mile to save three young women who are wrongly implicated in a case despite being victims of molestation. The movie sheds light on the ordeal that most rape victims face in the country.