As Bachchan turns 80, audiences throng theatres to watch classics 'Deewaar', 'Amar Akbar Anthony'

Amitabh Bachchan

It's almost a meta experience of watching a hot-blooded Amitabh Bachchan in a cult classic like "Deewar" on big screen at a time when his latest film "Goodbye", which sees him in the role of a grieving patriarch, released just four days ago. Bachchan, who turned 80 on Tuesday, is an actor for all seasons and ages. There were barely a few front row seats that were vacant at the 6 pm to 9 pm show of "Deewaar" on Monday at the Subhash Nagar-based PVR Pacific in New Delhi.

The cross-section of the audience that had turned up to see the popular crime drama, as part of the Amitabh Bachchan film festival to mark his 80th birthday, even left Munna K Pandey, a self-confessed Bachchan fan, amazed. "There were people of my parents' age who were walking with a stick. Next to me sat, people in their 30s to 40s, like me. There was also a pregnant woman in the audience. Two young men, who had managed to arrive right after completing their work shifts, were arguing with the theatre staff to let them sit with their laptops," Pandey told PTI. Film Heritage Foundation in partnership with leading multiplex chain PVR Cinemas has organised the film festival in honour of Bachchan's 80th birthday, as a part of which 11 movies featuring the megastar are being screened in 18 cities across the country. The four-day day event, titled 'Bachchan Back To The Beginning', opened on October 8 and closes on October 11, the star's birthday. While the tickets were priced at Rs 150 for the first three days and the day of his birthday at Rs 80, a festival movie pass at Rs 400 was brought out on the occasion to incentivise fans who wanted to enjoy all the movies.

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Recalling watching "Deewaar" for the first time in his teens on television and later renting out VCDs, Pandey said he wanted to feel the magic of Bachchan's 1975 film in a dark cinema hall along with several others, most of whom weren't even born when the Yash Chopra directorial had released. A non-film buff like Bhawna Maithani, who also watched "Deewar" at the same theatre, was equally surprised to see audiences across age, gender, and class hoot at Bachchan's entry and one-liners. People of my age generally flock cinema halls to watch younger stars like Ranveer Singh and Varun Dhawan. But they came to watch Bachchan in theatres even in this day and age. I witnessed this madness and fandom in real time. You can't say what it is but he is special. It was an eye-opening experience for me," Maithani, a guest lecturer at the department of political science, Satyawati College.

People know all the hit dialogues like 'Main aaj bhi phenke hue paise nahin uthata' or 'Tumhare paas kya hai?' by heart. As they watched the film in the hall, they left even Bachchan behind in speaking those lines, clapping and whistling when their idol recited those same dialogues. One needs to be in the theatre to understand this phenomenon called 'Bachchanmania', added Pandey, who is assistant professor, Hindi department at Delhi University's Satyawati College. eferring to Bachchan's "Deewar" character of the brooding, angsty atheist Vijay, an audience member declared 'Vijay buddhah nahin ho sakta! (Vijay can't grow old!') as the octogenarian star appeared in a commercial during the interval. "When the film ended, people stood up to give a standing ovation with a round of applause as if they were watching a live play," he said.

Box office duds "Boom" and "Mrityudata" that marks his low phase as an ageing star disappointed Pandey as much as the dance performance by the megastar in the election rallies of the late Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav. All in all, Bachchan is a phoenix. He rises from his own ashes every time," added Pandey. The same day, Mumbai-based Amit Dadhich had watched "Amar Akbar Anthony" and "Deewaar" back-to-back at PVR Goregaon with his parents, also sworn fans of the legend. As a child, the 34-year-old said he would burst into tears every time he saw Bachchan's characters die in the climax of "Sholay" and "Deewar".

"When I saw some of these movies now, it made me emotional again. I would not have missed this opportunity of going to the theatre and watching all his old classics. It was magical," Dadhich told PTI. Pranav Shukla, a school teacher in south Mumbai, said he watched "Amar Akbar Anthony" with his friends. "I have seen the movie many times on TV and keep watching it on YouTube. This is the most interesting film for me. It has drama, action, relationship, etc. I love the fighting scene between Amitabh Bachchan ji and Vinod Khanna ji and the climax scene is also one of my favourite scenes," Shukla told PTI. The festival was a huge success with shows getting sold out once the advance bookings opened on October 1, said Ajay Bijli, Chairman and Managing Director, PVR Limited. "There was a feeling of euphoria in the cinemas where these movies are being hosted. In one of the cinemas while watching Amar Akbar Anthony at the stroke of midnight on the eve of his birthday, the film was stopped with audiences celebrating the moment, something never experienced before," Bijli said in a statement.

Other Bachchan films that were screened as part of the retrospective gala were: "Don", "Kaala Patthar", "Kaalia", "Kabhie Kabhie", "Namak Halaal", "Abhimaan", "Mili", "Satte Pe Satta", and "Chupke Chupke".

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