Abhishek Bachchan turns 31

His silver screen debut was one the most anticipated events of the Indian film industry…the reason - He is the son of the “Undisputed Shehanshah” of Bollywood (oops a term which Big B considers derogatory). Expectations soared from fans, who were in teeming millions. But the result….He came, people saw & he flopped.Not one flop or two but 14 films in a row…certainly a worrisome figure. The fault was certainly not of his acting abilities or choice of movies, but “something was missing”. After struggling for nearly four years, his hard work and perseverance finally paid dividends and he tasted success. Having shown his class with amazing roles in the past three years, Abhishek Bachchan is at cloud nine these days, not merely for professional reasons but for personal joy as well. After romancing the ‘Queen of hearts’ Aishwarya Rai for over a year, Chhote Sarkar will tie the knot with her soon.
The journey from feeling the pangs of rejection by the audience that adore his legendary father to becoming the cynosure of their eyes has not been easy for the actor. As the talented actor turns 32 today, here’s a sneak peak at his struggle, triumph and romantic liasions. The grandson of one of the greatest Hindi poets, Harivansh Rai Bachchan, was determined to prove his point. Series of non-stop flops, a broken engagement, jibes of critics over a period of four years, couldn’t deter him from achieving his goal – establishing himself as successful actor. Eventually Lady luck smiled on him, his hard work began to pay rich dividends. Success is counted sweetest to those who never succeed…he finally tasted success in 2004- and since then there has been no looking back.
Yes, he is “Abhishek Bachchan”, lovingly known as Bachchan Junior, who has emerged out of his father’s shadow to carve a niche for himself in tinsel town.

What went wrong initially!
"`Hits and flops are not in my hand`, says Abhishek. Abhishek was considered as destiny’s child. The Bachchan surname, big films, big banners. He had it all. He began his career as an actor in 2000 with J P Dutta’s ‘Refugee’. The film bombed at the box office. Though the movie got him critical acclaim, but certainly not the dream debut like his screen rival Hritik Roshan.
BEveryone in the industry wants a hit. No one really cares who delivers. All that matters is a hit. If an actor associated with a movie fails to deliver a hit, he is subjected to all sorts of criticism, no matter what the surname is. It happened with him too.After Refugee, the next two films (Tera Jadoo Chal Gaya and Dhai Akshar Prem Ke) too failed to make a killing at the box-office. Whether the rejection was coming from the audience or critics or both, was a different thing altogether, but the reasons were more or less the same.

Some people were finding faults with the kinds of roles that were coming in his kitty.

Being the son of legendary Big B, audiences wanted to see a new Amitabh in him in his initial movies. When they didn’t see that, they rejected him outright.

Some critics also say that in dialogue delivery, dance sequences and postures, he was merely an awkward shadow of his almost perfect Father.

His hairstyle and weight were also subject of criticism.

Media too did not lag behind in terming him a ‘desi videsi’- due to his insistence on conversing in English and inhibitions in speaking Hindi during the press conferences and promotional events. (The English-only bug had earlier cost others actors like Kareena Kapoor and Esha Deol too hard)

Constant comparisons with Big B

Inability of directors to get the best out of him

And most important reason given for his failure by his fans was of spell of ill-luck.

When asked the reason for his flopping Abhishek said, “We do our job to the best of our ability and leave the rest to the audience.” Despite of a disappointed start, the film industry continued to give him chances. Abhishek was paired with heroines like Aishwarya Rai (Kucch Na Kaho) and Rani Mukerjee (Bas Itna Sa Khwab Hai), but success continued to elude him through the next three years. Although his other movies also bombed at the box office, his critics and audience appreciated his performances in many of these flicks. In Sooraj Barjatya misfire, Main Prem Ki Dewaani Hoon (2003), Abhishek sprung a surprise. As the shy suitor, his performance was refreshingly heartfelt.

And yet, after 12 releases and four years in the industry, the actor was yet to deliver a hit. This was quite a peculiar case of its kind. Abhishek’s performances were being appreciated but the movies were just not working. In 2003, when asked about his flops, Abhishek said,” You try and analyse what went wrong. You try your best to identify the problem and rectify it. Like I said, you make a film with your point of view, perception and sensibility. But the audience may not agree with it.”

Personal blues: 2003 was certainly not the best of year in Abhishek’s life, as apart from the professional problems that he was facing due to constant failure, he received a jolt on personal front too. His high-profile engagement with fellow star and long-time sweetheart Karishma Kapoor broke up. The news, which came barely four months after the two were engaged, shocked the entire film fraternity. Karishma was a constant companion and major source of strength for him, so he took some time to recover from this personal tragedy. Abhi finally tastes success! In Bollywood, one right movie can change your destiny forever. Something similar happened with Abhishek. Mani Ratnam’s “Yuva” (in 2004) did for Abhishek, what Zanjeer did for the “Angry Young Man” in 1973. Abhishek’s portrayal of the layered goon Lallan Singh in ‘Yuva’ was highly appreciated by one and all. The critics were ecstatic about Abhishek. Commercial validation came just three months later in the same year when his action-thriller Dhoom succeeded at the box office. ….And there has been no looking back since then.

From un-noticed destiny’s child, he became the ‘King of Versatility’ in a span of two years. In Yash Raj Films` Bunty Aur Babli, the Young B showed off a gamut of disguises and expressions as a small-town con man. In Ram Gopal Varma`s Sarkar, critics said that Abhishek performed merely through the intensity of his eyes, a rare quality mastered by his father. In some of the scenes, he looked like giving the senior actor (Big B) a run for his money.

In Anubhav Sinha`s Dus, he is showcased as a testosterone-fuelled car-bike-babe dude. His killing dance sequence in song Dus bahane karke…. created waves across the nation. But he scaled new heights through his breathtaking performance in Ratnam’s ‘Guru’. Today Abhishek is adored and loved for intense acting abilities and amazing sex appeal. Like his father, Abhi too has achieved the difficult task of appealing to both the classes and the masses.