Anthony Bhai! R.I.P

Entertainment, Films - By Sajana Jayaraj on Thursday, April 1, 2010 - 15:05

On 15th August, 2000, I sat in a darkened hall, watching the evening scene fill with Jai's mournful mouth organ tune, as Radha silently dimmed lamps one after the other. It was the 25th anniversary of Sholay. TV channels were airing interviews, streets were full of posters, and cinema halls were overflowing with nostalgia-filled, mad fans like me. And, by god, watching Sholay on the big screen that day, I fell in love with Amitabh Bachchan all over again.

Then KBC (Kaun Banega Crorepat) debuted on TV, and I spent evenings dreaming of a phone call saying, “Namashkar, main Amitabh Bachchan bol raha hoon”. The heroes of our generation – Vijay, Jai and Anthony Bhai - merged into this person on a game show and made it into our hearts again. Who wouldn’t in their right mind not forgive and forget the disastrous Lal Badshah or the tacky Bade Miyan, Chote Miyan then? AB was back. I watched countless reruns of Deewar and Trishul, ignored the looks of the rental guy when asked for copies of everything from Saudagar to Shehenshah. I even roped in some friends to watch Silsila in office!

Then came his son's glam wedding, and the bubble burst. Watching Amitabh take part in the media circus, live 24x7, was the beginning of the end of a life-long affair. My appreciation for the man drowned in disgust. Love faded. Memories of his films, those moments spent laughing, crying, dancing and mouthing dialogues with him were pushed back into some dark corner of the mind. Black, Nishabd, Sarkaar, Paa came and went. I never entered a theatre to see his films again.

He had turned into just a celebrity. A brand. The hero of my generation had ‘evolved’ and moved on. New film makers had moulded him into new characters, just as ad-wallahs and politicians. He took over new personas – where the personal, political and the screen personality became one and unidentifiable.

Occasionally, I wondered if there still lurked the Vijay Khanna of Zanjeer or the Vijay Dinanath Chauhan of Agneepath when he was acting in films in which kids were named ‘sexy’. I was clearly being foolish. Last month, Amitabh became the brand ambassador for Gujarat at the request of its chief minister Narendra Modi; a man who, at least in the conscience of many, has been convicted of a genocide for his part in the post-Godhra riots. That single gesture swept away any remnants of respect for Amitabh, the superstar.

Anthony Bhai, Iqbal Khan, Jai? They probably never existed. How silly of me to impose screen characters ethics and ideals on the actor who just portrayed them. They were just chimeras glittering on a silver screen. To them, I bid a loving adieu. To the brand, I have nothing to say.