Amitabh Bachchan Movies
Amitabh Bachchan is the undisputed king of Indian cinema; having appeared in over 90 films, he is certainly one of his country's most prolific performers. His 1969 film debut, Saat Hindustani, was not met with success, but within a few years his place as a top action star in India would be firmly established. His 1970s success, including such films as Zanjeer, Deewar, and Sholay, would continue for over ten years. Eventually, Bachchan retired almost completely from acting and pursued other interests, including in film production and a brief political stint in Indian parliament. Although popular male action stars throughout Asia are inevitably compared to Clint Eastwood, Bachchan may, in fact, defy this rather cliched analogy. In addition to strong acting and presence, this Indian superstar's performances have also required singing and dancing in the elaborate musical numbers that are popular in his country's cinema.~ Jonathan E. Laxamana, All Movie Guide
A star-crossed love affair has political as well as emotional repercussions in this Bollywood romantic drama. Veer Pratap Singh (Shah Rukh Khan) is an officer and pilot in the Indian Air Force who one day meets a beautiful Pakistani heiress, Zaara Hayaat Khan (Preity Zinta), as she travels to a small Indian village to scatter the ashes of one of her family's loyal servants. Veer has family in the village, and while most Indians show no affection for Pakistanis, his aunt and uncle are willing to take Zaara in for the night. It isn't long before Veer finds himself falling for her; however, Veer learns that Zaara is engaged to another man, Raza (Manoj Bajpai), a cruel and humorless Pakistani. A friend of Zaara contacts Veer and tells him that Zaara wants out of her engagement and has strong feelings for him, but when he comes to her rescue, matters take a turn for the worse and Veer winds up in jail. Twenty years later, Veer is still behind bars, and finds that his case is being given a new trial, but while he has a new chance at freedom, he discovers his lawyer will be going up against a state attorney who has never lost a case. Veer-Zaara was one of the first Indian blockbusters to open in India, the United States, and the United Kingdom at the same time. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Shah Rukh Khan, Rani Mukherjee, (more)
- 2003
Directed by Honey Irani, Armaan centers around Dr. Siddharth Sinha's (Amitabh Bachchan) effort to build a state-of-the-art hospital that would provide treatment to any patient, regardless of race, caste, or financial status. His son, Dr. Akash Sinha (Anil Kapoor), is initially determined to help his father reach his goal, but his priorities change after finding himself caught in a complicated love triangle. Eventually, Dr. Akash must choose between the woman that he loves and his father's dream. ~ Tracie Cooper, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Amitabh Bachchan, Anil Kapoor, (more)
- 2003
Indian filmmaker Kaizad Gustad directs the big-budget crime heist movie Boom, starring supermodels Katrina Kaif and Padma Lakshmi. The story involves a group of fashion models who decide to take on the criminal underworld in a fight to acquire stolen diamonds. Bollywood stars Amitabh Bachchan, Jackie Shroff, and Gulshan Grover play the gangsters. Bo Derek appears in a scene reminiscent of her work in 10 (1979). Like Gustad's previous film Bombay Boys, the dialogue in Boom is spoken in a combination of Hindi and English. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Amitabh Bachchan, Jackie Shroff, (more)
Losing his job after assaulting a cashier whom he witnessed cheat a longtime customer of 100 rupees, schizophrenic bank employee Vijay (Amitabh Bachchan) decides to get revenge on his superiors by robbing the bank he had dedicated his life to serving. Vijay blackmails teacher Neha (Sushmita Sen) to train three blind accomplices for the task at hand -- Vishwas (Akshay Kumar), Arjun (Arjun Rampal), and Ilias (Paresh Rawal) -- who begin rigorously training for the complex heist. Though the robbery proves an extremely difficult task, the aftermath poses an even greater danger for the criminals as a series of double crosses finds thier already shaky alliance crumbling at the foundation ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Amitabh Bachchan, Akshay Kumar, (more)
When forbidden love tears a tightly knit Indian family apart, a mother's heartbreak prompts her son to reunite the shattered clan in this family drama from filmmaker Karan Johar. Business tycoon Yashovardhan Raichand (Amitabh Bachchan) has everything a man could ever want: a loving family, a thriving empire, and a beautiful wife. When Yashovardhan's son Rahul (Shah Rukh Khan) discovers that he is adopted, he expresses his gratitude through unwavering devotion and unending loyalty until the day that he falls in love with a boisterous young outcast named Anjali (Kajol). Disowned by his father and left to his own devices, Rahul gathers Anjali and her young sister, Pooja (Kareena Kapoor), and sets his sights on London. As the grief of Rahul's mother becomes too much to bear, Rahul's brother Rohan sets out to find his brother and reunite their fragmented family. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bachchan, (more)
- 1998
Indian screen star Amitabh Bachchan stars in this costume drama as Lal Singh, an underworld figure who uses his powers outside the law to bring justice to the poor and downtrodden -- whose rights are commonly violated. While Singh must sometimes resort to violence or even murder to achieve these ends, the people look to him as a champion, and he is treated with respect and impunity. However, a corrupt police official (Mukeshi Rishi) tries to put Singh behind bars, leading his mother (Nirupa Roy) and his many friends to come to his rescue. At the same time, Singh's father (also played by Bachchan) is the treasurer of one of the King's estates. He guards the fortune zealously against his son, as Singh feels that his father's actions betray his own people. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Amitabh Bachchan
This Indian film, like others of its genre, bears a distinct resemblance to the spaghetti westerns of Sergio Leone, which has prompted many to refer to them as "curry westerns." Badshah Khan (Amitabh Bachchan), an Afghan warrior, falls in love with Benazir (Sridevi), who tells him that he must kill Habibullah, the man who murdered her father. Killing the man brings him into conflict with a bandit named Pasha. Badshah, violently out of place in present-day society and embattled by present-day criminals, is imprisoned and separated from Benazir. It is not for many years that he can find reconciliation with the modern world, and a final reckoning with his enemies. Overly stylized direction and genre-mixing are standard in popular Indian cinema (this film even includes musical numbers), but can seem distracting to audiences unfamiliar to these films. However, this huge three-hour epic is powerful enough to accommodate every offbeat element. ~ Jonathan E. Laxamana, All Movie Guide
This Hindi action-drama stars Amitabh Bachchan as Vijay Dinanath Chahuan, a man whose moral father was murdered by the local mobsters. When Vijay reaches adulthood, he himself gets involved in the criminal underworld and ruthlessly rises through the ranks with the sole purpose of getting even with the boss who had his father killed. This violent and melodramatic film is epic in length and is one of Bachchan's most highly respected dramatic roles. ~ Jonathan E. Laxamana, All Movie Guide
- 1987
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An embittered policeman pushed far beyond the brink of tolerance, Officer Kapil (Naseeruddin Shah) grows not simply disgusted with the Indian drug trade (and the burgeoning problem of drug abuse in Indian society) but hell-bent on cleaning it up, as a one-man vigilante. So begins Pankaj Prasar's ultra-violent action opus Jalwa (1987). Kapil hits the inner city, arsenal in tow, and vows to exterminate the one drug lord whom he pinpoints as responsible for the slew of recreational drugs plaguing the Indian streets. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
