Twenty-five years after Indian Independence…Disillusionment had set in amongst the youth of the country. There was much corruption and unemployment and life was one big struggle. During this period in 1973, a film was released - Zanjeer. The film saw a new kind of hero, a hero who took the law in his own hands and fought the villain;a hero whom people saw as their savior. The actor playing the lead role, till then a struggler with a string of flops behind him, was Amitabh Bachchan.

The son of the noted Hindi poet, Harivanshrai Bachchan, he was born in Allahabad. He gave up his job as a freight broker for a shipping firm in Calcutta to move to Bombay in 1968. Months of struggle followed. Ironically known for his rich voice, he was rejected by All India Radio and even played a mute in one of his early films Reshma Aur Shera (1971). After some more flops where he even played villain to Navin Nischol's hero in Parwana (1971), Zanjeer happened.

In his early films like the Hrishikesh Mukherjee Directed Anand (1970) and Namak Haram (1973) or in Saudagar he was presented as a brooding melancholic anti-hero drawn from Bengali Literary stereotypes traceable to novelist Sarat Chandra Chatterjee and brought into Hindi Cinema by Nitin Bose, Bimal Roy and Asit Sen. But Zanjeer changed all that.

With his tall and lean looks, Amitabh became emblematic of the new kind of action hero. Whereas his predecessors such as Rajesh Khanna and Dharmendra played romantic roles, Amitabh introduced the motif of the 'angry young man' to Indian cinema. This is at a time, in the mid-1970s, when domestic politics was in a period of great turmoil, student unrest was high, and the employment prospects for educated young men were bleak at best.

In Deewaar (1975), which furnishes the classic example of the double in the Hindi cinema, he played the role of a mafia don opposite his policeman brother, played by Shashi Kapoor. It was a brilliant performance with Amitabh more than able to humanize the gangster and have people sympathize with him rather than with his law-abiding brother.

The theme of 'alienation' is further explored in Trishul (1978), Kaala Pattharand Shakti (1982) where as the son of a strict police officer (Dilip Kumar), Amitabh takes to the life of high crime and smuggling. Bachchan's persona in these films is often defined by two female females: the melodramatic mother, often played by Nirupa Roy, who symbolizes the family and the 'liberated' woman as personified by Zeenat Aman (Don (1978), The Great Gambler (1980)), Parveen Babi (Deewaar, Amar Akbar Anthony (1977), Kaalia (1981)) or Rekha (Mr. Natwarlal (1979), Suhaag (1979), Silsila (1981)).

Though he played the angry young man to perfection, Amitabh scored in all types of roles be it the sensitive romances of Yash Chopra (Kabhi Kabhie (1976), Silsila (1981)) or the entertainers of Manmohan Desai. (Amar Akbar Anthony, Parvarish (1977), Suhaag (1979), Naseeb (1981) to name some) He excelled in all types of scenes be it action, drama, song and dance or comedy and consequently his films began to be a one man variety entertainment show. (Take the comic drunken scene in Amar Akbar Anthony or the drag act in the Mere Angane Mein song from Lawaaris (1981) - Pure 'items!')

In 1984, when at his peak as a star, he tried his hand at politics. Due to his enormous popularity, not to mention the close association he enjoyed with Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, and members of the Nehru family, he was elected to parliament with a huge majority from his home city of Allahabad.

But his stint in politics did not last long and he was implicated in some scandals. He gave up his seat in parliament, vowing never to be involved in politics again.

On the personal front though he did win the National Award for his portrayal of an underworld kingpin in Agneepath (1990), it was more like Deewaar revisited. He took a break from Hindi Cinema after Khuda Gawah (1992).

Some years ago, Amitabh attempted a return to commercial Hindi cinema, but he has not had the impact that he had in previous years. However he continues to have an extraordinary public presence in India. The biggest feather in Amitabh's crowded cap was being chosen as the superstar of the Millennium over such greats as Charlie Chaplin and Laurence Olivier and being selected as the first film personality from India to be immortalized at Madam Tussaud's Wax Museum, London! And by he hosting the popular game show Kaun Banega Karodpati? he not only came back with a bang but endeared himself to the younger geneartion of today as well. On January 26, 2001 he was awarded the Padma Bhushan for his contribution to Indian Cinema.

Today he continues to be perhaps the busiest actor in Bollywood with roles still specially being written for him. And even today in films like Baghban (2003) and Khakhee (2004), he shows how easily he can rise above any script and breathe life into each and every role he plays.