AMITABH BACHCHAN MERE PUJYA BABU JI SADI KE MAHANAYAK HAI, MEIN NAHI

Sometime in the sixties a little boy accompanied his famous father, the renowned Hindi poet Dr. Harivansh Rai Bachchan to all the kavi sammelans and mushairas at which his father was very popular and was in great demand in various cities in Uttar Pradesh and other states where Hindi was a known magazine. That boy was Amitabh Bachchan - BY ALI PETER JOHN

His being in constant touch with his father gave Amitabh the opportunity to know how popular his father was and how lovers of Hindi poetry went into resounding rounds of applause and how he sent them into raptures every time he recited one of his poems, the most popular ones being from his collection of poems, “Madhushala”.

The young Amitabh made up his mind to read every poem written by his father and gradually mastered the art of reciting his father’s poems, every one of them without referring to a book or any piece of paper.

He took up a job in Bird & Co in Calcutta, but he never lost touch with his father’s poetry, even his latest works.

Amitabh then came to Bombay to try his luck as an actor and after the initial failures and humiliation became the superstar of the country but his father was always the superstar for him and he made it a point to recite his father’s poems at every opportunity he found.

Talking about his father, Amitabh once said, “I am no star or superstar. I have seen the stardom of my father as a poet and I can in no way be compared to him.

I may be a star or superstar for some time, but my father will be a superstar for me for all time”.

He had made special arrangements to have a prominent corner in his house in “Prateeksha” where he had a specially designed book rack which was only for the books of his father and he had the edges of the pages of every book in gold and his entire collection was given the name “Bachchanama”.

Amitabh made it a point to see how he could accommodate his father’s poems in some meaningful films and among the films in which he had two poems of his father were “Agneepath” and “Main Azaad Hoon”.

Amitabh even made his father’s poems known in different parts of the world when he took time off and flew to countries like France, America and even some of the Gulf countries to take part in special programmes and functions arranged to honour his father.

At seventy-three, Amitabh is still the greatest fan of his father about whom he says, “he was a poet far ahead of his times and every poem of his is still relevant today and will always be.

I may admire many other legends but there is no one I can admire as much as I admire my father”.

Amitabh has even inherited some of his father’s qualities, especially his determination and will power and his respect for time.

He once told me a story about his father’s determination. He used to go for a walk every morning.

He once saw a huge boulder in the way and decided to take it home. He was too weak to even imagine trying something like that, but his determination showed him a way.

He pushed the boulder a little every morning without letting anyone know and after days of his experiment and his never say die spirit he succeeded and his family was taken by surprise one morning when they saw that boulder right outside their door.

Amitabh has the same kind of determination and I remember one of the doctors at the Breach Candy hospital who was treating him after that near fatal accident in 1982 telling me that Amitabh had survived not so much because of the treatment he received but because of his determination to fight and not let death get the better of him.

SOME OF THE GREATEST AND DEVOTED FANS OF AMITABH BACHCHAN I KNOW AND HAVE MET (A TRIBUTE OF LOVE ON THE EVER SO ACTIVE AB) IT WAS MY PLEASURE AND PRIVILEGE TO BE REMEMBERED BY HIM - ZAIN HUSSAIN FROM DUBAI

It was the year 1994, it must have been- the very first time I met Amitabh Bachchan.

It was at an event of the World Chess Championship in Hyderabad, he had come there to inaugurate it and apparently, this was the time.

He had taken a sabbatical from movies, I managed to get passes to this event thanks to my uncle's influence with the Police Commissioner....and me along with a couple of my friends reached the destination but were in for a shock when we saw Amitabh Bachchan with tight security around him....no way we could have met him ever...but we wanted to....so we bribed our way to meet Amitabh Bachchan...we hatched a plan...we went to the entrance of the place and spotted the car in which Amitabh Bachchan had come...we met the driver there and gave him some amount as “chai-pani” and told him ...all we want is to meet Amitabh Bachchan...he said don’t worry...he won’t drive till we meet him...in a few minutes out came Amitabh along with the hosts and his bodyguards armed...we stood by the car...and just as he was about to enter the car...we popped in front...he could hardly do a thing but to greet and meet us...we just told him how lucky we are to have met him and got his autograph....there was a photographer as well who took many pictures and that was out prized moment!....my first meeting lasted a few seconds but will remain etched in my memory forever!

Other meetings I will just explain briefly

On the sets of “Aks” - Juhu : Amitabh was shooting for “Aks” and I got my appointment through Rosy Singh....he was shooting in a house near Juhu...we went there and were received by Rakeysh Mehra's assistant who guided us to a room and told us to wait there....Amitabh arrived within a few minutes, me and my cousin who lived in Mumbai kept waiting and were hearing all the great dialogues being shot on a floor below us...as soon as it was pack up...in walked Amitabh with his gracious smile...in the same “Aks” get up...I was just so thrilled ...we spoke to him for a long time and he was very happy to know about me, I showed him my room pictures and he just loved them....the meeting lasted almost 10-15 minutes but each minute was so beautiful!

My other meetings were then on other sets of his movies ...a few which I recall were “Aankhen”, “Family”, “Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham”, “Ek Rishta”...and a few others...all were wonderful...then a few personal meetings at “Jalsa” and in various hotels in Dubai whenever he would come, all these meetings lasted 5-10 minutes.

The longest meeting was at the set of an unreleased movie called “Johnny Mastana”, it was being shot in Hyderabad and I got a chance to make an appointment....this meeting was special because Amitji gave me 30 minutes...it was the longest meeting...and another meeting to remember....it was a very personal Amitabh Bachchan whom I discovered in this meeting, he spoke about his health, about his father “Babuji”, about his mom, about his children, about his future projects and he also enquired about me....it was wonderful because Amitji gave us all the time to be with him, to know him, to ask him whatever I wanted...he looked after me too, he also offered me his meals in his vanity van....oh god how can I forget eating his dal-phulka and steamed bhindi cooked by one of his travelling chefs using the Ramoji Film City hotel kitchen, it was followed by a Swiss chocolate...a whole bar for me and my friend...while he ate just a piece...it was a special evening...I guess the year was 2011, I suppose.. The time when AR Rahman won the Oscar along with Resul Kutty...because I recall talking about these two as well.... anyways this was a meeting where I discovered the real Amitabh Bachchan.

I am fortunate to have met Amitji at least 10-15 times....and I feel so honoured that he at least remembers me...or tries to when he sees me...he has the highest regards for me ever since I told him that my grandmother and his mother were friends from Panditji's era.. He was all years when I told him about how my grandmother innocently asked Tejiji...as to a new actor named Amitabh Bachchan is acting in movies and whether if in any way he is related to her...to which Tejiji replied...."I am glad for once someone is asking me about him....otherwise it was only through him that I am known"....Amitji laughed at this....and he told me about his devotion to fitness, how he prefers home cooked meals, how he tries hard to be with times on his daily blog and twitter....and about how he feels he gets offered more better roles...the ones they have in Hollywood for his age actors.

As Mr. Bachchan turns 77 years this October 11th....I would quietly send my message to Kishore his able assistant or Rosy Singh as usual but it will be in the zillions of messages that he would receive on this day....alas I am just one of his zillionth fans...but just fortunate to have met him in my life...Amitabh will always know me as yet another fan,,, ,and I guess I will be happy with this recognition alone...in my years of reading Ali Peter John's articles on devoted fans like Charu...I feel just so small...yet feel mighty big coz I also did my kind of justice to this legend in my own way...by dedicating a whole room to him and having some of his most prized pictures....as always...I keep longing to meet him at any given opportunity!

May God bless him with good health always for he has kept us entertained all these decades and it just goes on and on.... that’s the power and enigma of a Superstar named Amitabh Bachchan!

SOME UNUSUAL FANS OF THE UNUSUAL AMITABH BACHCHAN - Ali Peter John

In all my forty - nine years in this good ,bad ,sad and mad industry (I cannot believe that I will be completing fifty years in January 2020)I have understood many things and I have even misunderstood many other things , but if there is one thing I have never understood is how one individual becomes a fan of another man or a woman and forgets that the star , superstar or legend is another human being like him or her .

I have never understood how people can take such a mad liking or even love for someone who they have never known , hardly met or talked to and have only seen them on the large screen or the small screen or on the different channels and the covers and the inside pages of glossies and other magazines and yet place them on platforms , pedestals and altars where gods and goddesses and saints are placed .

I have not understood why lacs of such fans used to throng "Aashirwad "when Rajesh Khanna was the superstar and how the same throngs fled the scene as soon as he fell from his place and grace and was sidelined for another superstar like Amitabh Bachchan who he (Rajesh Khanna ) firmly believed was no competition for him and could not even dream of standing in the shadow of his superstardom ......

But , that is life in this industry , take it or leave it , love it or hate it .It is now more than forty years since Amitabh Bachchan has taken over as the superstar and the star of the millennium , but his shine is not only untouched or unchallenged , but has only grown with time , even though all the younger Khans and Kumars and Devgns have tried their best and even their worst to reach anywhere near him .

Every Saturday and Sunday evenings, I have been seeing thousands of
men , women and children gather outside "Jalsa" like people at a place of worship or pilgrimage only to have those two minutes of his" darshan "and this kind of a scene is a regular happening with one generation handing down to tradition to another generation and everything and everyone changes , but the object of the worship of these millions has not changed and the way things are ,it seems that there will never be another object or deity of veneration or worship ......

What is that something special that marks out this man from all the millions? What is that pure magic and magnetism that attracts and draws the millions to him?

What is that great love for him that makes people go out of all human ways to show their affection and unlimited love for him which he had often said , he will never be able to pay back ?

Why did people even put their lives at risk and at stake when he was lying on that bed at the Breach Candy Hospital , fighting a grim battle against all the forces of death ?

I too was a part of the sad crowd waiting to get the latest bulletin about his health.

I too wept when there were rumours about his death , not once or twice , but several times during the two months he was in hospital and the whole country was praying for his life in temples and mosques and churches and any and every place where devotees believed their prayers his life would be heard ?

He came back alive, he was a shadow of his original sell , but he still had confidence and the faith of the millions who had prayed for him and even in that gloomy atmosphere , he had some inner courage to say that he would try , he would really try to live up to the expectations of the people who showered him with all their love and affection.

And what a way he has after he made that effort to let his fans know that he would never let them down ....

To a very large extent, I believe in what my friend from Dubai, Zain Hussain who is a die-hard fan of Amitabh says.

Zain believes that there is a little or more of Amitabh Bachchan in every Indian and even in those who know even a little about him and his work.....

On the occasion of the seventy- seventh birthday of Amitabh, I pay my tribute to some of his unusual fans who I have given the opportunity and the freedom to remember the Amitabh Bachchan they know and in their words....

ISHAN JHUNJHUNWALA--My parents were after me to get married. I was working in Indonesia and I had told them that there was no question of my getting married till I had at least had a glimpse of my only favourite hero, Amitabh Bachchan.

They had seen several girls for me, but I stuck to my decision about seeing Amitabh in flesh and blood in Mumbai.

I was now thirty years old and my parents and my entire family was growing desperate.

My brother was struggling to become an actor in Mumbai and he told me that he knew a senior journalist called Ali Peter John who was close to Amitabh.

My brother talked to Mr Ali and he fixed up an appointment for me. Believe me, I gave up everything and took the first flight to Mumbai and Mr Ali took me and my brother to ‘Prateeksha', Amitabh's bungalow and I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw Amitabh Bachchan face to face.

He put his arms around me and started talking to me as if we were long lost friends. I couldn't believe what was happening.

My brother took hundreds of photographs in the few minutes that were in Amitabh's bungalow. I was moved to tears when Amitabh himself came to see me off at the gate.

I took the next morning's flight to Jaipur and told my parents that they could select any girl and arrange my marriage as soon as possible.

An entire hotel in Jaipur was booked for the wedding reception. Every room was named after a popular film of Amitabh Bachchan.

A new menu card was prepared with all the dishes named after the characters played by Amitabh.

The bar was named the ‘Sharaabi' bar and only the songs and music of Amitabh's films were played by the band of the restaurant.

Every guest was presented with an album of the photographs my brother had taken of me with Amitabh.

I can never forget that evening at ‘Prateeksha' all my life. Luckily, I have only one son and we have named him Amitabh.

ANIL JADHAV--I was a fan of Amitabh Bachchan ever since I was in school. I had made up my mind that I would leave Belgaum and go to Bombay only to see Amitabh Bachchan once.

After a few days in Bombay, I met Mr R.D Rai who was a senior photographer working for ‘Screen' and I told him about my ambition.

He took me to a man who he said was his boss and could do anything in the industry. His name was Ali Sahab.

I just told him about my desire to meet Amitabhji. He took me and Rai to the Ajanta Hotel in Juhu where Amitabhji sat as the head of ABCL.

He told Amitabh about my desire to see him and Amitabhji who was dressed in a suit came out of his cabin and shook my hand and I could feel my whole-body tremble with joy.

He asked me what I was doing for a living and I said I had only wanted to see him. He told me, “mere dost, isse bhi aur zaroori kaam hote hai.

Shaadi ki hai ki nahi tumne? Shaadi karo toh zindagi sudhar jayegi". He let me sit with him on a sofa with his hands still around me and asked to take as many photographs as he wanted.

I was in the seventh heaven. I went back to Belgaum and told the whole city about my meeting with my God. I then got married.

I have two grown up sons, one is named Amit and the other is called Sumit. It is more than twenty years now, but I remember every moment of that meeting and my only dream now is to meet my God again with my family on his birthday.

I hope the God above listens to my prayers and I and my family have a darshan of my God on earth.

MR AHMED QURESHI from Saudi Arabia--I had a love marriage and all was well till the night of our wedding.

As soon as the lights went off in our hotel room, my wife Fatima refused to talk to me and she didn't talk till the next three days.

I and everyone in the family tried to ask her what was wrong with her. She finally wrote a note and gave it to me.

She had written that she would not talk it all to anyone till she had met and talked to Amitabh Bachchan.

I was in a serious fix and didn't know what to do till I thought about my friend, Robert D'Souza who had told me that he had a friend in Bombay who knew Amitabh Bachchan.

I begged of Robert to do something about my unexpected problem. He called his friend in Bombay and told him about my problem.

His friend asked me to fly down to Bombay as soon as possible. I reached Bombay and Fatima as still not talking to me.

Robert's friend said he had fixed up an appointment with Amitabh for us the same evening.

We walked in and Amitabh came down the stairs and called out Fatima's name and I saw her face brighten up for the first time in many days.

Amitabh kept talking to her for the next fifteen minutes and when we came out, there was a miracle.

Fatima started talking, laughing and singing till after we celebrated the miracle in a five-star hotel.

It is more than eighteen years now and Fatima has not stopped talking about Amitabh Bachchan and now our sixteen year old daughter, Mariyam has also become an All Amitabh Bachchan Radio which only talks about Amitabh and only plays his songs.

MR MUTHU SWAMY says that his eight-year-old son was dying of a rare disease and doctors couldn't do anything to save him.

His sick son told him that he would be healed even if he saw Amitabh Bachchan from a distance.

The father did everything to fulfil his only son's wish and the boy was completely healed and is a chemical engineer today.

Ms CHARU KANANI played at the Mahim Church for nine consecutive Wednesdays which was her way is praying for Amitabh when he was critically ill at the Breach Candy Hospital and on the tenth Wednesday Amitabh was out of hospital and Charu Kanani remembers that the date on which Amitabh came back home was September 24,1982.

I got Charu a personally autographed photograph of Amitabh on her daughter Ashwina's wedding and she has still kept that better in her personal jewellery box.

And Professor Swaminathan balanced a coconut on his head and walked from Ahmedabad to the Breach Candy Hospital only to get the good news that Amitabh was safe and on the way to complete recovery.

And Mrs George from Andhra Pradesh walked on her head round the rim of a well which were considered to be sacred as her prayers for her hero to be saved from the well of death.

And I have no hesitation in confession that I had taken a vow to kill myself of drinking if Amitabh was not brought back to life by God and the gods and goddesses at the Breach Candy Hospital.

And thank the God above or wherever he is and all the gods at the hospital in Bangalore