Regrets: ‘I am incapable of doing politics’

Amitabh Bachchan looks back at career as lawmaker, promises he made to constituents

Megastar Amitabh Bachchan, who had a short tryst with politics, said he is still not able to get over it, as he regrets not fulfilling the promises he made to the people of his Allahabad constituency.

The 73-year-old, multiple award-winning actor took a break from Bollywood in 1984 to enter politics in support of a long-time friend, Rajiv Gandhi. He contested Allahabad’s seat and won by a huge margin.

His political career, however, was short-lived as he resigned after just three years. “I still think of it because there are many promises that one makes during election campaigns. My inability to keep those promises hurts me. If there is anything that I regret, it is that,” The Indian Express quoted Bachchan as saying. “I made a lot of promises to Allahabad and its people but wasn’t able to fulfil them. I try to do whatever I can but I know it is something that people of Allahabad will always hold against me.”

According to Bachchan, the decision to join politics was emotional but when he got into it, he realised that emotions had no place there. “I had wanted to help a friend. But I realised that politics has nothing to do with emotions and that I am incapable of doing politics. So, I left.”



When asked if his departure cost him his friendship with the Gandhi family, Bachchan responded with a no. “I don’t think it cost me at all. Friendship is not lost at all,” he stated.

“You become an artist and there are people who love you and I have a desire to reciprocate that. If it happens to be a politician who loves you, then you reciprocate it. But just because I am reciprocating does not mean I am going to love politics.”

The Wazir star went on to explain why he does not identify with the field too much. “Politicians are very powerful people. I don’t know if they can damage or harm someone and to what extent, but the process of going to the law and battle is not my job,” he explained. “My job is to be on camera and deliver my best. I don’t want to divert my attention.”

Bachchan recalled an incident from when he was campaigning for the Indian National Congress in Assam and his helicopter landed at a location owned by the opposition. “Soon, the police asked us to leave. There were youngsters in the crowd and I remember one of them ran up, smashed the window and put a paper in my hand,” he shared. The paper said that the boy was a big fan but Bachchan’s political career was dividing his attention. “It is something that artists have to face. We spend our lifetime getting people to love us and suddenly, ask them to love our politics too? That is not right,” he claimed.

Bachchan’s latest film Pink – a courtroom drama-thriller – sees him play a lawyer for three young women who face assault charges after being molested by a group of men. It has been directed by Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury and produced by Shoojit Sircar, who is known for making politically-charged films like Yahaan and Madras Café.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 19^th, 2016.

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