Madhureeta Mukherjee (BOMBAY TIMES; April 29, 2018)

He’s 76 and not out. And the way he’s batting in every inning, for a long time, he will be on the field, sportingly. And what’s striking is that, after a 49-year-long career, Amitabh Bachchan still has the gusto of a young actor and the curiosity of a newcomer. That’s what makes him a master of his craft and keeps him ahead of the curve. For the past 10 years, he’s been enthusiastically writing a blog every day, and his colossal following on social media is something that few can boast of. In his upcoming film 102 Not Out directed by Umesh Shukla, he plays a 102-year-old spirited father to Rishi Kapoor, in a unique story that’s based on a Gujarati play. In a quick chat with BT, he shares his past experience of working with his 95-year-old co-actor Zohra Sehgal, he tells us what he appreciates most about Rishi Kapoor and how he feels he’s a friend to his children. Read on…

What was your first reaction on knowing that director Umesh Shukla was keen to cast you as a 102-year-old man? He told us that you didn’t take more than 10 minutes to agree to do the film. Have you met people of that age?
Yes, I agreed immediately. It was an unusual concept where a 102-year-old father wants to send his 75-year-old son to an old age home. There are more elements to the story, but this point itself was so attractive. I have met people of that age. In my film Cheeni Kum directed by R Balki, the lady who played my mom’s role, the late Zohra Sehgal, was 95 years old. She was a renowned theatre artiste and I knew her sister (Mumtaz) and her from years ago. On set, she was incredibly vibrant and more excited than all of us. As soon as we would pack up, she would ask, “Where is my drink?” When the film was over, she told me, “Amitabh, you owe me some champagne.” When Umesh was discussing the character with me, the brief he gave me was that he didn’t want him to be depicted as a frail old man with a walking stick and a trembling voice. This film is based on a Gujarati play where the same characters (played by Rishi Kapoor and Big B) were staged by actors in their 30s.

So, did you draw references for your part from what you fondly remember of Zohra Sehgal’s persona?
Well, some things always stay with you. Zohra Sehgal and her sister were prominent theatre artistes. They were all associated with Prithvi Theatre. Back then, Prithviraj ji (Prithviraj Kapoor) was associated with all these talented theatre artistes and my family’s association with him is from that time. Whenever he came to Allahabad, my babuji (Harivansh Rai Bachchan) and he would spend time together and sometimes, the entire troupe would come over to our house. After the play would get over, Prithviraj ji would call my father across and they would have poetry sessions. We would all go and watch his plays; Zohra ji was a part of that era. She was always so full of life that you couldn’t ever tell just how old she was.

The song Badumbaaa was your idea and execution, too. What inspired you to create a song for this movie?
During the last schedule, when we were shooting on the balcony, it started raining and we had to stop our shoot. At that point, I thought that we should have a song that’s full of life, which would serve as an attraction for the audience. I told Umesh, ‘Let me create something and if you like it, we will see what we can do with it’. I have always been a great fan of Caribbean, Rhumba and Samba, so I composed something, put music to it and sang it. I called two of my young friends, Rohan and Vinayak, who are music directors in their own right. They assisted me, as I can’t understand the technology that is used now. They added the sound to it and we recorded it. Badumbaaa is something I just invented on Twitter, because every time there is some achievement or moment of rejoicing, for instance, when India wins a match, how do you express your joy? So, Badumbaaa is a form of expression. We got Amitabh Bhattacharya to write the song, and I asked him if we could include the word Badumbaaa in the structure of the song. He was able to do that. In the song, Zumba, Zumba are his words, but Badumbaaa is mine (smiles).

Rishi Kapoor and you have starred in several films before this, you first worked together 44 years ago in Kabhi Kabhie (1976), and after that, in Amar Akbar Anthony, Naseeb, Coolie and Ajooba. What was the feeling of sharing screen space with him after 27 years?
We are professionals and artistes. We love our job and the movie that we are doing. Our job on the set is to accomplish what we are asked to do. And if we know the actors personally and if we have worked with them before, there is a sense of comfort. So, having worked with him in so many films before, there is no question of not feeling comfortable. Apart from that, it is not like we were meeting after 27 years. We live in the same city and we are in the same profession. For us, it was like another working day.

Any aspect of Rishi Kapoor as an actor that you distinctly remember from the older days?
He is a tremendous artiste. One thing I appreciate the most about him is that I have never seen any other artiste lip sync a song the way he does, he is brilliant at it. You can actually feel that he is singing the song. It is very difficult to do, as half the time, we are trying to remember our steps and the lyrics, and we forget about focusing on our facial expressions. Chintu ji is immaculate at lip-synching. And Ranbir (Kapoor) does it the same way; when he sings a song, you can’t find a fault in it.

At 76, you have a glorious career to boast of and a great innings ahead. You have also have stayed relevant with the times, whether it is your presence and impact on social media, or the kind of films you choose to do. Has it been a conscious effort to stay ahead of the curve?
Ten years ago, someone told me to write a blog. I wrote a line and I got a response. I wrote four lines and got some more responses. Ever since then, I have been writing my blog every day, without a miss.

Does writing give you a deep sense of fulfillment?
It gives me an opportunity to connect with my fans who I now call EF (Extended Family). Earlier, they didn’t know me, and I didn’t know them. They didn’t even know each other. Through the blog, the EF community knows each other personally, they even travel from different parts of the country and meet each other. The EF of that city accommodates those visiting in their homes. It is impossible to respond to each and everyone on my blog and Twitter timeline, but yes, I read their responses and it is interesting because you get another view point of yourself. Everything is not always good and flowery on social media; there is abuse, negativity and criticism, too. I think if you are in a medium like this, you have to be mature enough to deal with it. I absorb all that. Some of the criticism and feedback are valuable and I acknowledge them. I try and rectify myself if I have made a mistake. So yes, there is negativity and one must accept it. I don’t block or delete any one. I have some brilliant minds who write on my blog, who do great analysis of the work that I do, and I often share that with my directors. We often incorporate their ideas, too.

At your age, you could probably feel physically restrained to do some roles, but do you ever feel emotionally or mentally fatigued to get into a character and give it your best?
No, why should I? If it’s going to be exhausting, then I wouldn’t be working in the film in the first place. Once I have committed to a film, I have no reason to behave like that. Why should my passion change or lessen over the years, it’s my job. It’s my profession and I have been in it for so long. If I have taken up a job, I’m obliged to give it my best shot.

You play a 102-year-old father in the film. In real life, did your role as a father change as your children grew older?
I think the relationship any father shares with his children is an individual choice. Every father behaves in a particular manner with his children. I feel like I am a friend to my children. Well, of course, you will have to ask them whether I am a friend to them or not, but I talk frankly and freely to them. We discuss subjects and attitudes which are young, old, and topics connected with my work. I ask them about the current music scene, where they went out and all that. There’s an old saying…When the son wears the father’s shoes, they become friends.