Megastar Amitabh Bachchan recalled facing rejection and harsh criticism during his struggling days in the Hindi film industry. The actor, while in a conversation with Commonwealth Games 2026 gold medallists Lovlina Borgohain, Jhandu Kumar, Sharmila Dhankar and Asmita Dey in a special episode celebrating India\u2019s sporting achievement, revealed the harshness he faced during his initial days.<\/p>\n
The actor recalled being told that he was too tall to become an actor and being asked to leave a film set after he arrived late for a shoot. During the episode, Asmita asked Bachchan whether, like athletes are often scolded by their coaches for making mistakes during training, do actors also face the ire of directors on film sets. Big B laughed as he recalled how much he was criticised when he was trying to establish himself in the film industry. \u201cHumko badi daant padti hain, shuru-shuru mein toh bahut padi thi. \u2018Tumko kuch aata nahi hai, acting-wacting, tum bahut lambe ho, jaake ghar jaao.\u2019\u201d (I used to get scolded a lot. In the beginning, I was scolded immensely.<\/p>\n
They would tell me, \u2018You don\u2019t know anything about acting, you are too tall, go back home\u2019) He then recalled that even after he finally got work, the criticism did not stop. \u201cPhir jab kaam mil gaya, \u2018accha chalo theek hai, udhar khade ho jaao, aur dialogue bolo. Aise koi dialogue bolne ka tareeka hai?\u2019 Aise daant deke, aise bhale karo, dheere-dheere phir usko\u2026\u201d (Then when I finally got work, they would say, \u2018Okay, fine, stand over there and say the dialogue.\u2019 They would ask, \u2018Is this any way to deliver a dialogue?\u2019 They would scold and correct me, and slowly, I improved) Bachchan also shared an incident from his early days when he arrived late for a shoot and was asked to leave the set. \u201cAam taur par hum chahte hain ki hum samay se pahunche shooting ke liye. Ek baar der ho gayi. Director jo hai, woh bahar khada hua, set ke. Aur hum gaadi lekar, kisi aur ki gaadi thi, tab hamare paas nahi thi, lekar pahunche toh usne dekha, shooting pack up ho gayi hai. \u2018Get out from here,\u2019 aur usne mujhe nikaal diya.\u201d (Usually, I try to reach the shoot on time. Once, I was late.<\/p>\n
The director was standing outside the set. I arrived in a car that belonged to someone else because I did not have a car at the time. When I reached, the director saw me and said the shooting had been packed up. He told me, \u2018Get out from here,\u2019 and asked me to leave) For the uninitiated, Amitabh Bachchan who has been a part of the entertainment industry for over five decades, first association with cinema began as a voice-over artist before venturing into acting. In 1969, he had lent his distinctive baritone to Mrinal Sen\u2019s \u2018Bhuvan Shome\u2019, a low-budget film that became a landmark of India\u2019s parallel cinema movement.<\/p>\n
Around the same time, Amitabh Bachchan had auditioned for a newsreader\u2019s position at All India Radio (AIR) but was rejected, with his deep voice reportedly considered unsuitable for the job. He then went on to make his acting debut the same year with \u2018Saath Hindustani\u201d, which unfortunately did not click with the audience. The megastar\u2019s breakthrough came with films such as Zanjeer, which established him as the \u2018angry young man\u2019 of Hindi cinema. He subsequently delivered a string of major hits including Deewaar, Sholay, Don, Muqaddar Ka Sikandar, Trishul, Kaala Patthar and Agneepath amongst many others. Over the decades, Bachchan has worked across genres and generations, with films such as Mohabbatein, Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, Black, Paa, Piku, Pink, 102 Not Out and Jhund adding to his extensive filmography.<\/p>\n