Blogging is the most independent way to talk to people: Amitabh

Tanu Talwar

He might be 67, but there can be no matching his magical aura or the heart-thumping rush Amitabh Bachchan’s presence brings. For a man, who spells competition for actors half his age, giving them a hard run for their money, Bachchan has been rightfully crowned as the ‘Shehenshah of Bollywood’. Nevertheless for the undisputed legend, for Amitabh who has had the most humble beginnings in the glitzy world of showbiz, even a title as mighty Shehenshah falls short to convey the magnitude of his being. The veteran actor, who has had many firsts to his credit; be it the first Asian actor to be waxed at the Tussauds or the only actor who has been churning blockbusters for the past 15 years, Mr Bachchan has seen the pinnacle of success and is in many ways synonymous with the word. But behind all these stupendous accomplishments and unparalleled success stories there is a man of rare found simplicity, heart rendering gestures and humility in its most immaculate forms. The most dashing old man of Bollywood, who though has experienced absolute raw power that is said to be the most intoxicating, remains unfettered by the powerful image that surrounds him. Here in the capital to promote his upcoming flick ‘Rann’, the veteran actor dressed in a sombre beige suit wooed an eagerly awaiting audience as he settled for a Q&A session with the media. Q. So ‘Rann’, what’s it all about? Amitabh: Before I plunge into talking about the film, I would like to talk about a little incident that happened before coming to Delhi. As I was on my way to board the plane a docket was handed over to me by the organisers of the event. The docket had everything as to how I should behave, how I should address the media etc. What I found good was that the docket was so precise that it even mentioned that we might have to walk 100 meters from our car to the venue. But what I didn’t like was the subject I was asked to speak on. The subject was the 21st century journalist and my blog. And frankly speaking, there is nothing much I can speak on the subject without sounding like a professor. Q.Your blog has become a rage of sorts. How did it happen? Amitabh: My fans and the members of the fraternity often suggested that I should have a website that should state facts about my family, my films and my life in general. And it was during one of those discussions that the word blog came up. I was amazed to know that it was the one tool via which I could get in direct conversation with fans without being scrutinized. It’s an independent way to talk to people on a one-on-one basis. Q. So how has the blog experience been? Amitabh: Oh, it has been fabulous. The communication is so much faster. It feels like, I am sitting with one of my fans. I was pleased to know that so many people have access to the medium. People from all over the world log on to speak their thoughts. They comment on my films, inform me about what the media reports about me, question my actions. While some shower praises, others sometimes even get abusive. When pour out their fury, I was informed that there are moderators through which one can block abusive comments. But I felt that would be unfair. It would be like ignoring one of my fans. So, I just read all the abuses and extol that comes my way. Q.Tell us about your role in ‘Rann’? Amitabh: I play the role of a Vijay Harshvardhan Malik. He is the owner and the editor-in-chief of an electronic news channel. The channel is called India 24X7. The story revolves around the struggle between the two ends of his job. At one end, there are his principles, morals and his ideal journalistic ethics that constantly nudge him to uphold the truth, on the other end there is his business acumen that forces him to twist the truth in order to survive the cutthroat competition between news channels. Q.So is the movie a kind of an exposé on the manipulations that news channels indulge in? Amitabh: Well not manipulations, but it looks into the various means that channels take to survive in the TRP driven industry. Q.In other words, it shows the twisted ways channels resort to get higher TRPs? Amitabh: See I would like to state that I have the highest regard for news channels and that’s because I understand the struggle reporters go through to get the right byte. I feel that its one of the most difficult professions. Media is the connecting medium between people and the various organisations. It is the conscience of the nation. While doing the film, I realised that media has a really tough job where one would have to constantly make choices between conscience and commerce. But one should not feel that this film shows the bad aspects of news channels. It presents both sides of the current news business. So please go and watch the flick before deciding its fate. Q. How did ‘Rann’ happen? Amitabh: I was sitting with Ram Gopal Varma discussing my blog when he told me about his idea to make a movie about news channels. Varma and I had long discussions about media and its impact and I realised that what I do as a blogger is somehow similar to what the media does. And that’s when we decided to do a film together. Q. Playing a journalist, did you ever feel like taking up the profession? Amitabh: If you have read my earlier interviews then you’ll know that there was a time when I wanted to become a journalist. During the 70s, I had thought of journalism as an ideal career. What could a better job be than being able to bring out the truth before the public? Q. You have done a multitude of roles. Is there a role that you still dream of playing? Amitabh: I look forward to new challenges in all my films. It is not often that you get to play a character, which is completely out of your realm of imagination. I hope that in the future too, I get good roles offered that enable me to try out new things. Q. So what’s the kind of preparation you underwent for this role? Amitabh: There has been no research involved. Thankfully, I have a director who knows what he is doing and I just followed his instructions. I have been interacting with the media for the past many decades as part of my profession as an actor and that experience helped me in my role. Other than that all I had to do was follow my director’s instructions.