| Amitabh Bachchan is pure phenomenon. And like all phenomena,
people want to know about him and read about him, whether it's about his successes or
failures. We have tracked Bachchan the Phenomenon as well as Bachchan the Person ever
since we first put him on our cover in 1980. We called it Amitabh Bachchan: The One-Man
Industry. The phrase stuck, even as other things came unstuck soon after his peak in 1984.
The unsuitable politician, controversies over Bofors and his brother Ajitabh, a near-fatal
accident on the sets of a movie, the reluctant retirement, the failed comeback.
Twenty-five incisive articles and interviews that recorded the life and times of
Bollywood's biggest name. More coverage for any individual other than politicians. There
was no option. If this man sneezed, Bollywood would catch pneumonia -- the industry lived
on him, lived off him. Now, he is more like a person who is looking for reprieve in a
reprise. In this issue, we record an icon at
the crossroads -- again. At 55, fighting for a comeback with today's teen heartthrobs when
his peers are either retired, or dead. It isn't all pleasant reading. Bachchan is stung by
bad investment decisions, a turbulent personal life, and it's quite likely that if his new
films don't do well, it may be over for him. "He wanted to be the entertainment
tycoon," says Senior Editor Madhu Jain, who wrote the story, and has chronicled
Bachchan since the late '70s. "He hasn't really recovered from the failure of abcl,
and this is more like the last stand of a man who, above anything, hates failure."
This is a Bachchan more like the early days, when he was willing to try anything and
everything, fighting to make a mark. Now, he wants to leave an indelible one. What kind,
is an open question.
(Aroon Purie) |
