Monday, August 31, 2009

I left politics as I was inadequate for the job BigB

I left politics as I was 'inadequate' for the job: Amitabh (Lead)

New Delhi, Aug 31 (IANS) Bollywood icon Amitabh Bachchan, who was a Lok Sabha MP in 1984-87, says he quit politics because he felt he was "inadequate for the job".

"Many ask me why I joined politics and why I left it. I joined it because I was asked to and left because I was inadequate for the job," Bachchan posted on his blog www.bigb.bigadda.com

The veteran actor came into politics at the behest of friend and then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi. He contested the Lok Sabha election from his hometown Allahabad in 1984. He won by a huge majority.

He says it is a tough job to be a politician and admires those who have managed to stay put in it.

"Politics is a complicated world - a world where if you are unable to play the game, you would remain a novice and a stranger eternally. I admire those who have remained in it for long years. (I) admire the guile with which they steer their boats every day, every minute. The ease with which they make associations and break them, reject foes and months later embrace them as dearest friends. It is a tough job.

"A job that I would never be able to do. I would never recommend it to anyone. But I do know that those who pursue this line do so with utmost dedication and passion. Their dedication and passion is admirable," he said.

Bachchan is currently in Singapore with his politician friend Amar Singh. The Samajwadi Party leader underwent a kidney transplant there.

I was inadequate for politics says Amitabh Bachchan

I was inadequate for politics, says Amitabh Bachchan

New Delhi, Aug 31 (IANS) Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan, who was an MP for a brief period in the 1980s, says he discontinued his association with politics because he felt he was "inadequate for the job".

"Many ask me why I joined politics and then why I left it. I joined it because I was asked to and left because I was inadequate for the job," Bachchan posted on his blog www.bigb.bigadda.com.

The sexagenarian came into politics at the behest of good friend and former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi. He contested the Lok Sabha election from his native Allahabad in 1984. Though he won by a huge majority, Bachchan failed to make his mark as a politician.

He says it's a tough job to be a politician and admires those who have managed to stay put in it.

"Politics is a complicated world - a world where if you are unable to play the game, you would remain a novice and a stranger eternally. I admire those who have remained in it for long years. Admire the guile with which they steer their boats everyday, every minute. The ease with which they make associations and break them, reject foes and months later embrace them as dearest friends. It is a tough job.

"A job that I would never be able to do. I would never recommend it to anyone. But I do know that those that pursue this line, do so with utmost dedication and passion. Their dedication and passion is admirable," he said.

Bachchan is currently in Singapore with his politician friend Amar Singh. The Samajwadi Party leader had undergone a kidney transplant there recently.

Saturday, August 29, 2009

Place in the history and annals of Indian Cinema BigB

Singapore       August 29, 2009                Sat 7 : 05 PM


There were some more episodes of oxygen intake yesterday. The whole business of trust and the merry band of brothers overtook us for most of the while yesterday and somehow O2 did not find relative space within those confines. But it was a fascinating little walk down a small pebbled street, where thank fully no traffic was allowed. The edge of the road where this quiet lane began housed a most magnificent temple. It was spotlessly clean, had great carvings that reminded one of the carvings on temples in Southern India and there was hardly anyone in there. We stood outside, said a soft prayer and strolled down for a bit. The odd Indian that came by, waved a recognition, did not intrude and walked on. The discipline of the country infiltrates everyone, even the visitor.

A slow gentle drive followed thereafter around some of the more prominent locations. It was getting into the early part of the night and the lights of this metropolis from every floor and corner lit up the magnificence of modern architecture. Now and then early Singapore swung by - narrow lanes, old styled houses and commercial outlets, still maintained as they were, during the time of the British and maintained with great care. Wonderful to see the past kept alive.

Time constraints and urgent endorsement commitments have caught up with me and I had to ask them to adjust something here if not too inconvenient. Happily they have and we went into a huddle to discuss the commercial and the details of how when where and why. Commercial shoots have a world of their own . A five minute sequence for film would at times take half a day on set. But a 30 sec commercial could at times take more than a day to capture. Its the detailing and the eye on perfection that makes it count for these very sincere professionals and I have often admired the efficiency and the thought process that goes in to make a successful presentation.

This one is for Max New York Life the Insurance Company. They launch Max Vijay, a concept quite unique and fresh in this domain - retail insurance. It defies the conventional sale agenda of most insurance companies, where all sales are provoked and executed through agents. This Vijay is trying to instill the concept of the common man walking across to the street corner store and being able to buy your deal individually, through a process that gets over in minutes apparently. A concept where even if you missed your installment the policy does not die.

So in order that everything goes well the team has arrived from across the Bay and have set up a board room meeting to inform me of the creative. It is a bit daunting to walk in to a regular office like set up. Large conference table, chairs, writing pads, pens to scribble with, the plastic bottle of aqua, large drawing board, and very officious looking ladies and gentlemen with files of paper and laptops, almost anticipating the President to walk in and discuss an issue of grave international importance. They look at you with some reverence as they put you at the head of the table and systematically take you through the 'four lines' that have to be spoken or enacted. Its not the brevity of the creative that astonishes you, it is the amount of labor and work that has been constructed to make sure that within this brevity, the product comes out the winner. Discussions abound, camera angles, dress, tone of voice, meaning, properties… everything to the last detail. It has been always for me an exercise that I have admired. I love the professionalism that goes with it, the sincerity of effort and the energy to project 30 seconds of merchandise for a billion people.

And I am aware that tomorrow when we shall get down to shooting the advertisement, the actual process of delivering the lines will not take more than a few minutes, but the process will envelope a good 6-7 hours. Each hair in place, each leaf on the plant in frame, every little action by the actor, the speed of speech, the walk, the way we sit, the expression on the face, the correctness of each word, shall all be meticulously studied and debated and discussed by an entire panel of 5 or 6 concerned individuals, sitting in a semi circular arena by the monitor, until a unanimous verdict is obtained. This could come after a few hundred retakes !! Well not all the time, but certainly never in a single take even if all went well.

For cinema artists that rely a great deal on a spur of the moment delivery, a mood caught quite by accident because the time was right, or it just happened, the process shall not suffice when at an add., shoot. The repetition to achieve perfection is so intense that it could tire you out to such an extent that by the time you have given your 112th retake, you have forgotten your own name !!

But still nothing to take away from the effort of the team. It is a phenomenal experience and one that I believe comes from some of the most intelligent minds in the business. Their study of the pulse of the nation or the ingredients they require to capture their buying imagination is a remarkable marketing skill. It is no wonder then that many, indeed almost all film makers in today's world, deploy the services of Advertising Agencies for the furtherance of their products. And it is no wonder then that many from the Advertising world cross over into the world of film making and prove their worth.

R Balki - Cheeni Kum and Paa

Shoojit Sarkar - Johnny Mastana

Mukul Anand - Agneepath, Khuda Gawah, Hum

Tinnu Anand - Kaalia, Shahenshah

Rakyesh Mehra - Aks, Delhi 6, Rang de Basanti

…….. and a host of young and old, bursting through the doors of creativity, for a place in the history and annals of Indian Cinema..

May God bless them ..

love and love and love …

Amitabh Bachchan

http://bigb.bigadda.com/?cat=42

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Monday, August 24, 2009

On the auspicious Ganesh Chaturthi, my wishes and prayers for all Amitabh Bachchan

Singapore                                  August 23, 2009                           Sun 7:15 PM


ab-1

Vakra tunda Mahakaya surya koti samaprabha

Vakra tunda Mahakaya surya koti samaprabha

Nirvighnam kuru me deva Sarva karyeshu sarvada

On the auspicious Ganesh Chaturthi, my wishes and prayers for all. May the grace and kindness of Ganapati, fill your hearts with happiness and joy, with love and prosperity. May He rid you from all evil and guard and protect you from the perils of negativity.

The blessings of Ganapati shall remain in all the homes during these days in special prayer and obeisance. It will invite friends and visitors into our precincts and then when after a period of time the day for 'visarjan' comes it shall be taken in procession amongst song and dance and music to the waters of the sea and immersed, with the plea, to come again into us the next year.

Among the Muslims, soon it will be EID after the fasting and prayer during Ramzan. The Jains wish us 'MICHCHHAMI DUKKADAM' today on the auspicious Day of 'SANVATSARY' and beg for forgiveness for hurting your hearts and you, knowing or unknowingly, by any action or speech or even thought.

Such a beautiful confluence of all the faiths, their beliefs and their prayers. All expressing love and well being, all at almost the same time of the year. This is no coincidence of fate. It is a coincidence that has been ordained through thousands of years of belief. Millions all over this world shall come together to express their happiness and joy at this divine occurrence and the elements and the winds and the atmosphere shall be filled with positivity and the purity that comes with it.

There is no room within these precincts for hate and malice. We are all one in prayer. We are all one in peace. May this ever prevail. May this ever prevail. May this ever prevail… !!

I read your impressions on the topic of the previous post with pride. Pride of an elder that acknowledges the wisdom of its progeny. I am astonished at the output that comes from every member and full of admiration for the brilliance with which they put forward their thoughts. It is a graph of learning for me and I am certain for those as well who may have opportunity to read through. God bless you and your presence !

It has been nothing short of being enlightening !!

Of late I have been reading in the media, many discourses that direct our attention to, the realm of television and the content that prevails in them with some consistency. Most importantly they chip away, with some severity, at the abundance in the presence of the 'Reality Show'. They are every where they say, in almost every channel and each one of them claiming the success in viewership as per their ratings on professional meters. They say that the show succeeds in making celebrities of hitherto unknown individuals and that the world of TV at least, may not need the endorsement or participation of the real Mc Coy's. It has become somewhat of a pleasurable pastime, or should one say dedicated viewership, for the TV buff, to be involved in the public unveiling of a private existence. Extreme prudence does not permit me to direct your attention to the obvious names. You are all aware of them. The media analysis wonders whether certain constraints of ethics are being demolished, whether it is morally correct, or even legally, to permit such blatant exhibition. Legally one has not heard of many interventions in the electronic world, but I assume sooner or later some strictures shall start gaining a foothold. Till that happens, what really do the masses think of this assessment is what they want to know. I thought we could do an in house test within our own community and so a few pointers ~

* do 'reality shows' attract your attention

* what is it that makes it compulsive to view, if at all it attracts your attention

* is it the frivolous and titillating nature of the content that interests you

* if not 'reality' what other kind would you prefer to watch

* is the idea of something moral as content interest you or

* moral and entertaining

* should celebrities be an essential part of such entertainment, or not

* has the concept of the reality show been beaten to death

* and if so why is it that they still attract the maximum eye balls

My quest towards completion of my whim, continues ; the obvious problems not withstanding, namely, every response that I may give attracts another few in the same DAY. The line never seems to end. But we must endeavor and never turn back or stop. Just keep moving…

Goodness this is turning out to be some moral bashing is it not ? No .. this is not an effort to preach the goodies of life, it is just another promise. A promise of an … ice cream cone .. as simple and as delicious as that…

Where was this about an ice cream - "life is like an ice cream - eat it before it melts.."

Ah..!! Yes of course … "BLACK"

Enjoy.. life ..

ab1


Amitabh Bachchan


ab2

ab31

मेरे प्यारे और बहुत ही स्नेहपूर्ण परिवार के सदस्य अमिताभ बच्चन

Singapore August 21, 2009 Fri  11:35 PM

मेरे प्यारे और बहुत ही स्नेहपूर्ण परिवार के सदस्य ,

मै अमिताभ बच्चन आप सभी का अभिनन्दन करता हूँ , स्वागत करता हूँ .

मेरे बहुत से ऐसे पढ़नेवाले यहाँ इस ब्लॉग पर , ऐसे भी हैं जो शायद अंग्रेजी मे मुझे लिख नहीं सकते , या उनकी अंग्रेजी शायद इतनी अच्छी नहीं है . इसमे बुरा मानाने की बात ही नहीं है . जो हिंदी मे लिखेगा उसे मै हिंदी मे जवाब दूंगा और जो अंग्रेजी मे उसे अंग्रजी मे . यदा कदा पंजाबी और बंगाली मे भी उत्तर दे दिया करूँगा .

मेरा स्वस्थ अब ठीक है और मै यहाँ अपने मित्र और मेरे परिवार के सदस्य श्री अमर सिंह जी के साथ सिंगापुर मे हूँ . उनकी यहाँ एक ट्रांसप्लांट सर्जरी होनी थी , सो भगवन की कृपा से अच्छी तरह संपन्न हो गयी है . कुछ दिन यहाँ आराम करने के बाद ही उन्हें डॉक्टर जाने की इजाज़त देंगे . तब तक मै यहीं उनके साथ रहूँगा .

इस समय मै अपने चाहने वालों को एक एक कर के जवाब देने का प्रयत्न कर रहा हूँ . ये एक निश्चित रूप से बड़ा ही कठिन काम है , लेकिन मेरा ऐसा मानना है की इसे मै पूरा कर पाउँगा .

शेष समाचार साधारण है ,

आपका ही

अमिताभ बच्चन


The effort continues. The numbers keep increasing, but I labor, regardless. I am using the faster methodology of replying from the Dashboard and Comments section instead of opening up a post and scrolling down to the comments. That is the 35 sec, 27.2222222 process. I have not checked if the yellow is appearing or not. Where I reply now, there is a gentle green line which in time becomes white, so I really have no idea. Do let me know, people, how I am doing and a bit of encouragement in the pursuit of this task, would not do any of you any harm. A huge collective roar would reach the flash lightning and thunder skies that fell upon us this morning.

O, dear O, O dear O, dear… this is a mammoth tragedy. I have just discovered that an entire day spent on replying to comments has not been registered as a yellow line on the DAY. I am so distraught and crestfallen.. How could this have happened !! O, dear !!!

BUT … never you mind. My efforts shall continue. I shall go back to the original form of replies and start all over again. Ah…

The entire morning was spent in ducking inside the room as a severe weather condition prevailed outside. Massive thunder and lightening followed by torrents of rain. And now some hours later it has vanished and gone. All is quiet and peaceful again and life resumes normally.

I wonder when mankind was still finding his feet in this wonderful planet of ours,  how would he have reacted to the first bolts from the sky. The sound and the fury and the rain. What would have been his first thoughts. We hear  many old tales where the reference to such occurrences were described as 'the God's are angry with us', 'the fury of the heavens' and so on. But till science brought out explanations, this must have been a terrifying experience. As I would imagine would be the existence of so many other terrifying experiences - the plague, TB, the flu and so on. They still occur. But somewhere there is a relative comfort in the belief that a cure exists. Cancer and Aids have taken precedence over the malaria and pox's and gradually we have found that the percentages of a cure for these too is prevailing.

In cinema, Dilip Kumar in his historic performance in 'DevDas' died of TB, Rajesh Khanna several years later in 'Anand' died of cancer and Tom hanks in 'Philadelphia' died of AIDs. It would be somewhat of a Black Comedy moment to say that Indian Cinema or cinema by and large has made progress, because we have kept up with the times ! These were treacherous situations, created for film to enhance drama. We do not rely on them too much these days. Its a more violent death now. A gang war, an attack of terror perhaps. The stories and their drama moulded itself around the prevailing popular circumstances. TB and Cancer and AIDs were considered the 'in' element in the story. They were horrid thoughts, but for the sake of drama and screenplay they became an integral part of the play.

I am certain many sensitive readers of the blog will want to debate this issue with their most intellectual and intelligent outputs. It would make for an interesting debate I am sure. What is more sensitive ? The action and crime violence of guns and gangsters and shoot outs, or the misery of a sufferer of an incurable disease ?  Is the portrayal of a death scene harmful ? Death through disease, death through accident, death through the gun, what ?? A bit morbid I know, but a topic that we as actors are often faced with and more than often accused of. So lets put it up for the vote and see where it goes. And when the results come in, let us have a healthy debate on this medium and come up with some results. It may help us to understand what people think, and it may help you to understand what we think.

The issue of content in cinema - whether in India or in any other part of the world - has always been an integral base for argument and some very harsh proclamations, both for and against. It has intrigued me through several years of my participation in the field. What kind of entertainment is to be termed entertainment ? How real do we want it to be ? Is it important to portray facts or build fantasy ? Does cinema merely entertain or does it educate ? Should it educate ? How does it affect the morals of society ? Does it effect the morals ? And so many intriguing questions arise. It will be the opening of the proverbial Pandora's Box, but I think one that may bring some semblance of proportionate argument within our little world of the familia.

I leave early today in the festive spirits that abound among many faiths in and around this time of the year - Ramzan, soon to be followed by Eid and then the Ganpati Visarjan and the relevant pooja's, the Navratri and then on to Dushehra and then Diwali and Christmas…

What a wonderful world we live in. Where we learn to respect and honor the different celebrations of different faiths. We are the same humans, following different faiths. But 'faith' is complete trust, a confidence in someone or something a strong belief in God or in the doctrines of a religion, based on spiritual apprehension rather than proof. It is optimism, conviction and hope. All faiths propagate the same meaning. Then why do humans become different !!

In peace and love and faith ..

Amitabh Bachchan

http://bigb.bigadda.com/?paged=2

May the peace and blessings of God be upon you Bigb

Singapore Singapore Singapore
Fri  4:15  PM August 21, 2009

8464-002-18-1821

image001

Ramadan 1430

Assalamu alay kum (May the peace and blessings of God be upon you)


I would like to take this opportunity to wish all the subscribers and all Muslims well over the holy month of Ramadan.

Ramadan is the month of Qur'an since it was the month in which the Qur'an was revealed. It therefore behoves us  to reconnect with the Qur'an. The Arabic word Tilawah or recitation of the Qur'an is an act in which our heart, soul, mind, tongue and body participates – in short our whole existence. We must endeavour to be moved by the words of the Qur'an as God says in Qur'an:

'And when they listen to the revelation received by the Apostles, thou wilt see their eyes overflowing with tears for they recognize the truth: They pray: Our Lord! We believe; write us down among the witnesses.' 

http://bigb.bigadda.com/?paged=2

I observe that the number of comments that have come up so far has reached 906

Singapore           August 18, 2009                   Tue/Wed  12:45 AM


As I glance up from this page that I write on, I observe that the number of comments that have come up so far has reached 906.

The only other time it reached such a large proportion was when I suddenly decided to take an ambulance ride to the Leelavati Hospital, a birthday earlier. And I wonder whether one could compare the two circumstances with some impartiality or not. One was a sudden emergency, the other a sudden threat of one. One a circumstantial disconnect, the other a circumstantial ultimatum, a probability. Both however had one commonality. A plea to come back. Do we then infer that each time we need the numbers, we need to go away. Absence makes the heart grow … comments !!

What was interesting to observe, during this unfortunate procedure when there were definitive words expressed, was the appearance of several individuals that had never been seen or heard of before. These I would presume are the hidden talents among the FmXt. They are there, but are not there. This is interesting, and I wonder if since our average for a common day is about 350 to 400, it would imply that a larger number of EF visit us, but do not necessarily express themselves ?? I am enamored by this analysis.

I noticed another factor. 'Either you stop or I stop' was considered important enough to find the headlines of news papers. What in heavens name, would the media find so earth shatteringly important in an innocuous statement like that, on an innocuous blog by an innocuous certain Amitabh Bachchan ! But .. there it was. Reason anyone ??

"Thank God he's stopping - his media bashing was getting our goat !"

"Thank God he's stopping - we do not have to keep rushing to his self centered blog to find out what he's up to !"

"Thank God he's stopping - we now get to meet him personally to record that interview and not be in that humiliating situation of us sending him a questionaire on the email to respond !"

Ah !! Who cares ! What I get in return from my EF cannot be matched by assumptions from any other medium. They can only speculate. We shall dictate. Right ?? Right.

The name Amitabh Bachchan has always had its share of peculiar reactions. It has always been odd for people to either pronounce or spell it. In India, a country still steeped in caste distinctions, regional distinctions, the name Amitabh was unusual for most parts of the country, except Bengal. There Amitav or Amitava or Amitabho have been prevalent and popular common names. But Amitabh for central hindi speaking India was still unusual. And Bachchan more so.

Bachchan was my Father's node plume. A pseudonym, a pen name, a fictitious name used when working for a particular social cause. It emanated from his Mother, my Grand Mother, who lovingly called him 'bachcha', or child. Much like what many of us endearingly address our off springs as 'baby'. I keep doing it all the time when addressing Abhishek or Shweta and now Aishwarya. It comes involuntarily before starting a conversation on the phone or writing out an sms, or a Black Berry PING !!

So the Mother's 'bachcha', matured to 'bachchan' when my Father started writing his poems and Bachchan became the name he used as the author of his verse. This is not a peculiar occurrence in India or in these parts of the World, where a pseudonym has always accompanied most important and popular writers and poets. In Urdu poetry the nom de plume has also often found its way into the composition of a couplet or a quadruplet. It has been appreciated as an art to be able to do so, without deviating from the essence of the verse. And so, Bachchan became the name by which my Father came to be identified with. In his formal representations he was what his name was - Harivansh Rai, but his poetry was under Bachchan. For long he was always addressed as Mr Rai, many not being aware that he was Bachchan the poet. He was in true caste sense a Kayasth fom Uttar Pradesh, a Srivastava. Most prominent Kayasth names went under, Srivastava, Mathur, Verma and such, but my Father was a strong propagator against the caste system and deliberately refused to use Srivastava, because it identified a system he did not believe in. This was all very well till he was on his own. But with marriage, certain registration formalities and paper work had to be faced which sought clarifications. When he married my Mother and brought her to Allahabad where he lived, the people in the city started referring to her as Shrimati Bachchan, Mrs Bachchan. He was Bachchan and she, Shrimati Bachchan. It was when I was born, the first child of this union, and a first off spring for my parents, that certain firm decisions became compelling. At the age of four when I was to be admitted for my schooling, the dilemma of what surname I was to be registered with, became an issue. It was then that my Father and my Mother decided to give my family name as Bachchan and to start in their own words, 'the beginning of a new family'. I was registered in my first school, the St Mary's Convent, as Amitabh Bachchan. I am the first bearer of the surname introduced by my Father. The name Bachchan was also for the first time written against my Father's name, when he registered at Cambridge in 1952. Thus began the advent or the beginning of the Bachchan family. In ancient times the 'gotra' , an exogamous sub-division of a caste group, family, lineage, stock, marked the beginnings of special individuals. My Father did not start his family with any special status in mind, it was more a compelling decision than any else. But having started it, he had wished and desired as his sole  intent, that the individuals of this family in every generation should break the shackles of traditional conventionalism and move forward, to understand the strength in being alone, and to ground and express themselves without fear. At the same time he had wished that each generation should rear, foster and breed those qualities that are bound and tied together, connected, related and affiliated to, those of a child. Christ, he said, had pronounced in His divine wisdom that until you become a child, you will not be able to enter the Kingdom of Heaven .

I often wonder how the practice of surnames began and with what purpose. Many stories abound of it being initiated in India by the British for better identification of the various castes that existed in our social milieu. It also becoming a handy tool for the practice of their 'divide and rule' policy, in the administration and governing of this vast and diverse land. And even though modern India and some liberated souls pay little interest to the purpose and reason behind such nomenclature, it has the habit of creeping in to our thinking at times - not in any derogatory manner, but simply just…

Barve, Khare, Thakeray, Tendulkar, Gavaskar - ah.. Maharashtrian

Kapoor, Khanna, Chopra, Singh - Punjabi

Singh, Singh and Singh -  Sikhs and the Rajputs from Rajasthan

Bannerjee, Chatterjee, Ghosh, Ganguly - Bengali

Balkrishnan, Swaminathan, Ramachandran - South Indian

Mansukhani, Advani, Chugani - Sindhi

Shah, Patel - Gujarati

Nehru, Kachru, Kaul - Kashmiri

Jha, Sinha - Bihari

But Amitabh Bachchan, was a complexity ! And the varied manner in which it was getting pronounced was not helpful at all. It has had its fare share of distortions -

Mitab Singhya - for those that identify with my Sikh genes from my Mother

Ahmedtab - getting that Muslim tinge into it

Ameeta vachan - for those that have felt feminine qualities, and vachan, a promise

Mr Bachmann - on checking in at a New York or European Hotel

And when it gets too complicated and confusing - AB Baby

The Indian, my countrymen, will give it a good try when they first hear it. I talk of times before I joined the movies. Some from the UP and Hindi belt will immediately express reverence because of the Bachchan poet they identify with. Elsewhere they make sincere efforts to get it right. Overseas… thats a different ball game altogether.

Mention the name and there shall be an awkward silence from the other end. Its now become habitual for me to take the initiative and confess to them that it is a difficult name even by our own standards, to pronounce. That comforts them. And by the time we are back slapping each other, its either Abe, or Mr B !!

The Americans have made life so much easier for themselves. They just stick to John and Bill. So what if they were Presidents of the United States of America !

I tire now. It is past 4:15 AM on the 19th of August and I have still to hit the bed. The count meanwhile is 1,012.. whoaaa !! Thats the comments, not the pedometer !!

Love you, baby !!

Amitabh Bachchan or any of the above distortions

It is a tough task to express oneself when emotion has got the better of you Amitabh Bachchan

Singapore   August 17, 2009   Mon 7:35 PM

It is a tough task to express oneself when emotion has got the better of you.

Today I am compelled to take on that task, because emotion has indeed got the better of me.

I never choked when I wrote about my Father's passing or that of my Mother's, nor of any incident that may have been close to it.

But I am choked today. The eyes swell up with that strange liquid that appears involuntarily at moments such as this. The keys and the text that appear in front of me, blur and the fingers move at a pace that have no pre determined design.

Truth has that exceptional quality that, by its admission, has the capability of moving mountains. Mountains in its finite form yes, but also in the other. I choke today because I have been confronted by a mountain of emotion, an emotion that has without any dilution,  presented itself  before me by my extended family. I do not think that there can be any doubt, that when we have confessed, faced truth, been a part of it, or admitted its presence,  that we have not been overcome with overwhelming emotion.

The truth I face today is the limitless love that I have for this family of mine and the limitless love that it reciprocates me with, every day of the year.

I cannot decipher what it is I have done to receive such affection, but now that I have it I am not going to let it disappear.

NO…! I shall not stop writing. NO..! I shall not stop my connect with you. NO…! I am not going anywhere. I am here and shall remain here !

Your reassurance, your faith and your commitment to our humble medium has been beyond measure. I shall never have sufficient strength to ever challenge it. The impregnable walls that we have constructed around our little world, the unbreakable links that have formed within each one of us in our chain of friendship and family, the abstract air of deep understanding and togetherness, is not going to be swayed or dented by any encumbrance. We may totter unsteadily, we may run against obstacles, we may be suppressed through force, BUT .. We shall rise above it all, unscathed, to walk the path we have chosen to walk.

I do not drink. But let me hold a glass to that and say a cheer for the well being of our fraternity.

"Hurting someone is as easy as cutting the tree. But making someone happy is like growing a tree – it takes a lot of time !!"

Another day of relaxed intensity. An apprehension for perceived events. But when it evolved, a feeling of accomplishment and direction. What was it that Einstein said on those that fall into habits of thinking -

"Any man that reads too much and uses his own brain too little falls into the lazy habit of 'thinking'…"

I do not possess a brain so its use is very limited and I do not read much either. What would Albert have had to say to that, I wonder. The desire for knowledge and its pursuit has undergone such intense change that all the old adages and sayings of the learned seem redundant. Seem, please note. It is not definitive. If there have been modern interpretations or modes that have been developed to acquire material of importance the end results of all have a base in the classics of the past. Written, spoken or manufactured. In budhi haddiyon mein abhi bhi dam hai. The strength still lies in these old and weary bones !

That little mention of Aishwarya's indisposition has created a media hurricane. Headlines screaming she has swine flu have appeared along with other national news. The paucity of sensationalist material has created a herd mentality towards interpreting that gentle whiff of air into a storm of immense proportions. Getting the news out first has precedence over research and authentication. No, she does not have swine flu. She has improved and is much better and ready to resume work by tomorrow or the day after. I would have kept her home for another week. But …

In spirit word and deed, with you always ~

Amitabh Bachchan

http://bigb.bigadda.com/?paged=4

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Aladin Stills Photos Wallpapers

Amitabh Bachchan Aladin Movie Cast and Crew Amitabh BachchanWallpapers

Aladin Movie Cast and Crew

Aladin is a forthcoming Bollywood movie directed by Sujoy Ghosh of Jhankaar Beats fame. Amitabh Bachchan, Ritesh Deshmukh, Sanjay Dutt, Jacqueline Fernandez, Juhi Chawla and Sameera Reddy appear in pivotal roles in the movie. Aladin is a contemporary take on the classic fairy tale and boasts of a visual scale never seen before on Indian screen.

The film is slated for release on October 16, 2009.

Cast :Amitabh Bachchan, Sanjay Dutt, Ritesh Deshmukh, Jacqueline Fernandez, Victor Banerji, Ratna Pathak, Mita Vashishth, Joy Sengupta, Arif Zakaria 

Synopsis :
From the land of myths and legends - India - comes a fantasy adventure for the entire family. Directed by Sujoy Ghosh, 'Aladin' is a modern re-imagining of the classic tale of 'Aladin and The Magic Lamp'. Aladin Chatterjee (Riteish Deshmukh) lives in the city of Khwaish, an orphan who has been bullied since childhood by Kasim and his gang. But his life changes when Jasmine (Jacqueline Fernandez) gives him a magic lamp - because it lets loose the genie Genius (Amitabh Bachchan). Desperate to grant him 3 wishes and seek the end of his contract with the Magic Lamp, the rock-star Genius makes Aladin's life difficult until the real threat looms on the horizon : the ex-genie Ringmaster (Sanjay Dutt). Why does Ringmaster want to kill Aladin? What is the dark secret about Aladin's past that Genius is carrying? And what is Aladin's destiny? Find out more in this swashbuckling fantasy adventure film from Eros International and Boundscript Production. 

Cast: Amitabh Bachchan, Sanjay Dutt, Ritesh Deshmukh, Jacqueline Fernandez, Victor Banerji, Ratna Pathak, Mita Vashishth, Joy Sengupta, Arif Zakaria 
Crew Sound Designer: Dwarak Warrier, Madhu ApsaraDirector: Sujoy GhoshProducer: Sujoy Ghosh, Sunil LullaBanner: Eros InternationalMusicMusic Director: Shekhar Ravjiani, Vishal DadlaniMusic Company: Eros Music

Monday, August 17, 2009

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan down with chest infection

Aishwarya down with chest infection

New Delhi, Aug 16 (IANS) Actress Aishwarya Rai is down with a "chest infection" and "flu-like symptoms" and her father-in-law, Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan, is worried.

"Aishwarya has taken ill and is down with chest infection and flu like symptoms. She had a high fever yesterday, but is settling down today," he posted on his blog www.bigb.bigadda.com Saturday from Singapore.

"It's worrying to be so far away from children and not be there to look after them. Yes, they are mature and married and responsible, but children will always remain children," he added. Aishwarya is married to Bachchan's son Abhishek.

The 66-year-old veteran is in Singapore to look after his friend and Samajwadi Party chief Amar Singh, who underwent medical treatment there.

"I stay back till he (Amar Singh) is sound enough to travel back," he wrote.

Apparently Bachchan also is suffering from a "strained back".

Aishwarya Rai down with flu like symptoms News


Bollywood beauty Aishwarya Rai Bachchan has taken ill and is down with flu like symptoms, her superstar father-in-law Amitabh Bachchan wrote on his blog.

"Aishwarya has taken ill and is down with chest infection and flu like symptoms. Had a high fever yesterday but is settling down today," Big B wrote from Singapore.

Aishwarya, along with her husband Abhishek Bachchan, had been busy shooting for Mani Ratnam's Ravan.

Big B further wrote: "It's worrying to be so far away from children and not be there to look after them. Yes, they are mature and married and responsible, but children will always remain children!"

The veteran actor is in Singapore to look after his friend and Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh, who had undergone a heart surgery there.

Sunday, August 16, 2009

BogB hospital visits with friend


Singapore August 16, 2009 Sun/Mon 2 : 10 PM


A few hospital visits with my friend for routine checks and balances, a stop over at the chemist store en route, to get some tie ups for the back, the gym and the pedometer racing away to near 8,500 steps, to the room to respond to comments and a heavy heart to witness a few familia extendum, using the platform of this medium to get personal and ugly with each other. And each hashed comment that I came across as I scrolled down to the last, that indulged in a slang match, felt like a stab in my precarious rib cage.

So here are the options. Either you stop or I stop.

Happy Independence Day BigB

Singapore August 15, 2009


Independence Day … Swatantra Divas … the day India got its freedom from British colonial rule.

May the happiness and joy of this freedom, achieved through the struggle and sacrifice of thousands who fought and gave up their lives, be with us through out our history and may we forever be indebted and beholden to those sons of our soil, that made it possible for us to live and breathe in a free and independent world.

I was born in 1942, in the middle of World War II and at the beginning of the Quit India Movement initiated by Mahatma Gandhi against the British. I am a child of pre Independence. During the 8th month of my Mother’s pregnancy with me in her womb, she had bolted out of the house where we lived in Allahabad to join a ’satyagraha’ procession in Katra, a busy market area, slogan shouting the voice of millions of Indians who were demanding that the British leave India. There had been a ‘lathi charge’ by the forces to disperse the crowds. Protestors were being baton beaten and my Father’s friends had rushed in to save my Mother from any harm and escorted her back to her house. My Father was not in at that moment, but on coming to learn of this passionate and patriotic outburst from my Mother had reprimanded her, not so much for her act, but the inconsideration she had shown towards the life she was carrying. Later that evening, when tempers had cooled, some of those that had been a witness to the incident, joked with my Mother and suggested that if the child to be born would be a boy she should consider naming him Inqilab Rai - from the prominent slogan of the day, Inqilab Zindabad ! Long live the revolution !!

Just got saved from being pet named, Inky !!

There have been numerous Independence Day celebrations since and each one has invoked in us pride for the nation, pride for the flag and a pride in our free state. Many among our forefathers that fought this silent non-cooperative battle along with Gandhi ji, were inspired from similar struggles being conducted elsewhere in the world at the time. The Irish Revolution to be more precise, was a great and live example. And many nations after witnessing our struggle were inspired to fight for their own freedoms. The joy and ecstasy of identity, the selfish pride with which we connect and applaud our own land, our own people, is an emotion that has always surpassed all other. The rush of blood within us on holding the National Flag, as the strains of the National Anthem builds itself into a crescendo has never had an alternative expression. It has always been a face that has glowed with pride, with just that hint of moistness in the eye.

A dear family friend and one that had been in the forefront of our Independence Movement, was once narrating an incident she had witnessed at the Bastille Day parade many decades ago on the Champs-Elysee in Paris, when India was still ruled by the British. On one of the armored vehicles that were part of the parade, a large flag of France had been unfurled on its roof. Almost spontaneously and without warning a young woman spectator, watching the ceremony from the crowds on the side of the road, broke the cordon, ran and jumped up on to the roof of the vehicle grabbed the flag and wrapped herself around it in an expression of uncontainable passion and pride, screaming ‘Vive la France’ !! And our friend had said, what an emotional moment it was for her to see this, for, she wondered at that time, when it would be for India to be free and to have its own flag !!

Our flag - saffron, white and green said to, respectively, represent courage and sacrifice, peace and truth, and faith and chivalry. And the Ashoka Chakra in the middle in navy blue with 24 spokes came from The Lion Capital of Ashoka, the figure of four lions with their backs together, facing in the four directions. This was on top of a column during the time of Ashoka the Great, now secure at the Sarnath Museum. The wheel is taken from the base of this emblem, where it was prominently displayed.

Dr S Radhakrishnan, who later became the first Vice President of India, clarified the adopted flag and its significance thus -


Bhagwa or the saffron colour denotes renunciation or disinterestedness. Our leaders must be indifferent to material gains and dedicate themselves to their work. The white in the centre is light, the path of truth to guide our conduct. The green shows our relation to (the) soil, our relation to the plant life here, on which all other life depends. The “Ashoka Chakra” in the centre of the white is the wheel of the law of dharma. Truth or satya,dharma or virtue ought to be the controlling principle of those who work under this flag. Again, the wheel denotes motion. There is death in stagnation. There is life in movement. India should no more resist change, it must move and go forward. The wheel represents the dynamism of a peaceful change.

How beautiful and wise the significance and how inspiring the thought.

In India, our flag that is officially flown, can only be made from Khadi, the home spun yarn, made so popular by Mahatma Gandhi. It has to be of given specifications and is only available in the city of Bengaluru, erstwhile Bangalore. For long years the flag could only be flown at specified buildings and on the vehicles of specified national heads, but a young industrialist, Navin Jindal, recently moved the Supreme Court of India, on why flying the national flag could not be permitted on private buildings and structures, homes and offices, after he had been denied permission to fly it on his office building. Jindal won a historic verdict and thanks to him I now proudly fly the national flag on all my residences, following designated protocol.

Many from the media made fun and ridiculed me, when they first saw these flags on my house, questioning me first of how I was allowed to fly the flag; they not being conversant at all with the judgement from the courts, and later, on being apprised of the law, accusing me of sham patriotism. I cannot even accommodate a smirk at this most despicable taunt !

Jaya left this evening for Mumbai after having spent more than a month by the side of Amar Singh ji during his ailment. I stay back till he is sound enough to travel back. Abhishek is back today from Mani Ratnam’s ‘Ravana’ shoot in Ooty, now Udhagamandalam its original name. ( Must have been a tongue twister for the Brits when they came in so they named it Ootycamund and then for convenience Ooty). Aishwarya has taken ill and is down with chest infection and flu like symptoms. Had a high fever yesterday but is settling down today. Its worrying to be so far away from children and not be there to look after them. Yes, they are mature and married and responsible, but children will always remain children !

I have been lazy today. No, nothing to do with the promise of gymming - that incidentally was restricted to a milder form, due to a strained back - I did not make any attempt to give responses to comments. One of these days I hope I can surprise all of you.

In closing -

‘Funny how we can be more worried about what other people think of us, than what we think of ourselves.’

And that is for all you EF and FmXt that squabble among yourselves within the confines of a space, meant for healthy discourse. You do not set a good example for the medium you are on, and neither do you show respect to the person asking you to refrain from such unwanted activity.

‘Funny how simple it is for people to trash age old teachings whether they be based on a Godhead or not and then wonder why the world has become so unsafe, unstable and seemingly out of control.

Funny how we believe what the newspapers say, but question what our religious teachers of all faiths have taught us for centuries .’

Ponder dearest ones .. or are we laughing !!

india-flag-waving-emoticon-animatedAmitabh Bachchan