Bollywood’s hip

Amitabh Bachchan justifies announcing Aishwarya’s pregnancy online.

NEW DELHI:

Big B has lots to look forward to in 2011-12. He is a loud and proud grandfather-to-be and is also anticipating the release of his new movie Bbuddah...Hoga Tera Baap.

Yet when he announced the pregnancy of his daughter-in-law Aishwarya Rai, Bollywood’s megastar Amitabh Bachchan has been criticised for publicising his private life.

But Bachchan has justified his move on his blog Bigb.bigadda.com: “People often ask me: ‘Why do you do this (blog daily)? And how can you continue to do this every day without a break? You broke the news of Aishwarya on Twitter and your blog page. Why would you want a private moment in your life to be put on a public platform, and that too by your own accord?’”

The 68-year-old has just one reply to silence the wagging tongues. “I tell them that the people reading my blog and tweets are my extended family. I consider it my duty to first inform my family,” he wrote. He also mentioned that when Abhishek’s wedding was made a private affair, people had thrown stones at their house for not sharing the moment of joy with them.

Ironically while he prepares to become a grandfather, Bachchan senior is playing a 60-year-old “cool dude” in his new film Bbuddah...Hoga Tera Baap. The film is set to be released on Friday, July 1. In the film, the actor will be seen reliving various roles that he played in his successful hits during 1970s and 1980s, to promote the message that age is just a number.

Regarding his role as a hip, young-spirited man in his impending movie, Bachchan reflected, “The private persona of an artist does not always gel with his or her role in film. Are artists, who play negative roles, viewed as being villains in their homes as well? Had this been the case, actors on film, stage and TV would all be living in a dichotomy then.”

The veteran further elaborated his sentiments about being a grandpa to-be with a rocking Bollywood career in an interview.

How do you feel about being a grandfather to-be and a ‘cool dude’ at the same time?

Let the dichotomy exist in the minds of those who consider it to be one. For me, it is wonderful that I can enact a role of supposedly a “cool dude” at this stage.

How does it feel when young people call you the youngest grandpa (at heart)?

No one has called me that yet. But if they do, I will take it favourably.

Being an intrinsically sober soul, how difficult was it playing the flamboyant and loud character in Bbuddah...?

I would question your opinion of my being intrinsically a sober soul. And I would wish to know too how and why you reached such a conclusion. But that apart, I will play a flamboyant and loud character in the movie with the same sincerity as I have played a sober and intense individual in Anand, Deewar or Agneepath.

Apart from becoming a grandfather, what else are you looking forward to in 2011-12?

Versatility is what most artists hope to be attached to during their years of creative work. If in these years of my career I am getting the opportunity to portray different kinds of genres, then I will be happy.

Tom Hanks recently said he’d love to do a film with you?

He has probably googled the wrong person.





Published in The Express Tribune, June 28^th, 2011.