A sip of aerated water, a warm piece of the biscuit

London , UK              July 26, 2012           Thu  8:45 PM GmT

A sip of aerated water, a warm piece of the biscuit that contains the hyper ingredient, a quiet room, disturbing hiccups jerking my system after each drop of the sip and a barrage of emoticons bouncing in unison in this the most sensitive portion of my body – the brain !

Among the millions that wait in anticipation for the start of the London Olympics 2012, I find myself in great eagerness and resolve. Eager to spend hours of restful time in front of replay and slow motion imagery of sporting achievements, with a resolve that nothing but nothing shall take me away from it ! I also find myself in invitation to participate in the Olympic Torch Relay in the city of London, to bear the honor of holding the symbol of what this event stands for.

Sebastian Coe, or more correctly Lord Sebastian Coe, that heads the Olympic Organizin committee sends me a formal letter and I readily agree. Sebastian Coe has been, quite the champion in his own right in the 800 meters track event and I have been a great admirer of his athleticism. I did have the opportunity to see him tilt the scales against his arch rival Steve Ovett in the Los Angeles Olympics in 1984 at the Collesium, and what a moment that was. So this great sports celebrity invites me, I come to London and have just returned from a most memorable experience of my lifetime – carrying the Torch and running with it for some distance. The torch has been meticulously designed in a metal that can take the pressure of a live flame, its grill like appearance that has 8000 circular designs on it, is the 8000 miles that the torch shall travel in Great Britain and … the 8000 bearers of the torch that shall run with it to its final destination inside the Stadium built for the occasion of the 2012 Olympics.

This has been a singular honor, a moment of great pride not just for me, but the entire nation and I am truly humbled. In many ways it has reflected the spirit of the Olympics, that of creating a platform where talent from across the world comes together in a spirit of togetherness and camaraderie, to share harmony and peace, leaving behind all those elements that divide us and tear us apart !

What began as an event to exhibit a superiority of physical strength, speed and greater height, gradually has converted itself into a more moralistic stance – that of friendship, honor, peace, fair play. This is now no longer just a four yearly exercise in events that measure physical capability, but one that has become a movement which symbolically portrays the more finer elements of society and their rightful existence.

When different communities come together in a spirit of sportsmanship, they bring with them not just their ability as athletes, but bring with them a desire to compete in an atmosphere filled with value. This is most appreciated. And this is what I have liked the most.

Thank you Olympic Organizing Committee for your generous invitation. Thank you Lord Sebastian Coe. And most of all thank you City of London for your warm and generous welcome this morning. A day that shall remain etched for life.

My thanks go out to members of the Ef that have turned out in support, giving moral courage to an otherwise butterflies in the stomach situation ! And of course my endless gratitude to all the millions that have seen and felt the pride that we all have for our Country. Your words of encouragement and the patriotic flavor that it emanated has and will be always special for me. Thank you !!

My love and admiration always …

Amitabh Bachchan

So the excitement of the surprise is over

London , UK         July 25,  2012         Wed  9 : 12 PM  GmT

So the excitement of the surprise is over – the very prestigious Olympic Organizing Committee, headed by its Chairman, Lord Sebastian Coe, that amazing athlete of Great Britain, who I saw winning that historic moment in the track event for the 1500 meters at the Los Angeles Olympic – sends an invitation to be a part of the Olympic Torch Relay tomorrow as the flame passes through London, on its final journey into the Stadium for the Opening Ceremony, London Olympics 2012 !!

This is an incredible honor, humbling and so full of pride and emotion. A moment that fills me with all that reflects the spirit of the Games – a certain respectability and dignity that it offers, to all people and communities of the world, to come and compete in their respective skills in an atmosphere free from discrimination. To acknowledge not just respective talent, but to also demonstrate, equality, and democratic secular belief. A belief, practiced despite its destruction all around us in a world overflowing with violence and assertive practices.

Uniformed in the dress code of the Olympics and briefed on protocol and procedure, I am asked to cover a distance of 300 meters at Southwark in the Borough of London starting around 10:50 AM – a moment to be hopefully remembered by the grandchildren.

The run may not be possible keeping my surgery in mind, but there shall be effort made to move as close to it.

Much of the Ef and others on the networking sites have already been informed by certain official announcements, and I am happy that they are as happy and excited as I am.

As I write my thoughts for the DAY, I play the television before me and watch with amazement a coverage of the relay of the torch through Great Britain. It is a most emotional site to see the quality of those chosen to be a part of this run. There are athletes, now aged and barely mobile that have brought great fame and achievement for the country in past Olympics. Little children that have contributed in some way to society and its environs. Older men and women, contributions from whom can never be replicated, and several more. A sight that brings a nationalistic upsurge of what their country means to them, and how greatly they admire contributions made by these special citizens. So impressive !!

The media through various channels that exist here in London, has been calling in and I shall be with them as soon as my portion of the event is over. This once there shall be no hesitation in sharing our information with them. Moments such as these should all be documented in its purity, for future generations to absorb and comment !

I have posted too, the promos that depict the temperament of the forthcoming KBC and do hope to have some comment on them. Rehearsals for the oncoming season shall have to begin as soon as I get back. The apprehension if all shall work out fine, keeps bothering the psyche. But really the greater the apprehension and uncertainty, the more valued, and in greater control we all feel. It is the fear of failure and rejection that keeps one going embarrassingly close to what many wish to achieve.

I shall concede this argument. Surely I am out of my depth here.

The promos for KBC are in Hindi and shall be of some problem to the non language speakers. But they are propagating the belief that knowledge and knowledge alone can provide for you the right you so richly deserve. A young man deprived of his correct position and a young lady that has excelled in her studies, but is discriminated against, are the topics for this campaign so far. There are more that have been shot and I shall endeavor to put them up to you as soon as they are ready !

I should try for a good nights rest if I am to hobble my way onwards in a jog for the run, which I believe may take me longer than what is expected and programmed.

May the moral support you give me remain with me with your blessings and love ..

Amitabh Bachchan

ps : a fine and talented director writer BR Ishara passed away this morning early. He was innovative and fresh in his direction, his stories and in his presentations. He directed and wrote ” Ek Nazar ” with Jaya and me - a simple story, narrated in style with some excellent music. Our prayers and condolences to Rehana Sultan his leading lady of many films, whom he married later …

till very recently he would send me a note on something he appreciated in my work !!

A moment to be remembered by the grandchildren": Big B blogs about carrying the Olympic Torch

A moment to be remembered by the grandchildren": Big B blogs about carrying the Olympic Torch
NDTVMovies.Com | Thursday, July 26, 2012 (New Delhi

Amitabh Bachchan, who wrote earlier about taking the sunshine with him to London, will be part of the final leg of Olympic Torch Relay. He writes on his blog:

"So the excitement of the surprise is over - the very prestigious Olympic Organizing Committee, headed by its Chairman, Lord Sebastian Coe, that amazing athlete of Great Britain, who I saw winning that historic moment in the track event for the 1500 meters at the Los Angeles Olympic - sends an invitation to be a part of the Olympic Torch Relay tomorrow as the flame passes through London, on its final journey into the Stadium for the Opening Ceremony, London Olympics 2012 !!

This is an incredible honor, humbling and so full of pride and emotion. A moment that fills me with all that reflects the spirit of the Games - a certain respectability and dignity that it offers, to all people and communities of the world, to come and compete in their respective skills in an atmosphere free from discrimination. To acknowledge not just respective talent, but to also demonstrate, equality, and democratic secular belief. A belief, practiced despite its destruction all around us in a world overflowing with violence and assertive practices.

Uniformed in the dress code of the Olympics and briefed on protocol and procedure, I am asked to cover a distance of 300 meters at Southwark in the Borough of London starting around 10:50 AM - a moment to be hopefully remembered by the grandchildren.

The run may not be possible keeping my surgery in mind, but there shall be effort made to move as close to it.

Much of the Ef and others on the networking sites have already been informed by certain official announcements, and I am happy that they are as happy and excited as I am.

As I write my thoughts for the DAY, I play the television before me and watch with amazement a coverage of the relay of the torch through Great Britain. It is a most emotional site to see the quality of those chosen to be a part of this run. There are athletes, now aged and barely mobile that have brought great fame and achievement for the country in past Olympics. Little children that have contributed in some way to society and its environs. Older men and women, contributions from whom can never be replicated, and several more. A sight that brings a nationalistic upsurge of what their country means to them, and how greatly they admire contributions made by these special citizens. So impressive !! The media through various channels that exist here in London, has been calling in and I shall be with them as soon as my portion of the event is over. This once there shall be no hesitation in sharing our information with them. Moments such as these should all be documented in its purity, for future generations to absorb and comment !

I have posted too, the promos that depict the temperament of the forthcoming KBC and do hope to have some comment on them. Rehearsals for the oncoming season shall have to begin as soon as I get back. The apprehension if all shall work out fine, keeps bothering the psyche. But really the greater the apprehension and uncertainty, the more valued, and in greater control we all feel. It is the fear of failure and rejection that keeps one going embarrassingly close to what many wish to achieve. I shall concede this argument. Surely I am out of my depth here.

The promos for KBC are in Hindi and shall be of some problem to the non language speakers. But they are propagating the belief that knowledge and knowledge alone can provide for you the right you so richly deserve. A young man deprived of his correct position and a young lady that has excelled in her studies, but is discriminated against, are the topics for this campaign so far. There are more that have been shot and I shall endeavor to put them up to you as soon as they are ready !

I should try for a good nights rest if I am to hobble my way onwards in a jog for the run, which I believe may take me longer than what is expected and programmed. May the moral support you give me remain with me with your blessings and love .."

time ho gaya hai Pack Up last words told Rajesh Khanna

Jalsa , Mumbai                            July 18,  2012                          Wed 11 : 30 PM

I first saw him in a film magazine, perhaps Filmfare. He was the winner of the Filmfare-Madhuri Talent Contest, a contest that I had applied to in the coming year and been rejected. His film 'Aradhana' was my next meeting with him, at the Rivoli Theatre in Connaught Place in New Delhi, which my Mother took me along to see. The packed audience and their reactions to this young handsome man was impermeable.

The early, or shall I say preliminary rejection of my attempt to compete in the Filmfare-Madhuri contest, had made me leave my settled job in Calcutta. I had come away home to seek the possibilities of joining the Industry in some other way. But one look at Rajesh Khanna made me realize that with people like him around, there would be little chance or opportunity for me, in this new profession !

When I got my call for 'Saat Hindustani' I travelled to Bombay, got the role and went back to start its shooting. My friendship with one of the Hindustani's, Anwar Ali, brought me in the vicinity of his illustrious brother Mehmood. Mehmood bhaijaan's presence in the Industry and his own very large standing, gave me an opportunity to get an informal meet at one of the shootings of Rajesh Khanna. It was a very formal hand shake and that was it - a routine for him, an honor for me !

Soon after I was being cast opposite him in 'Anand'. This was like a miracle, God's own blessing and one that gave me 'reverse respect'. The moment that anyone came to know that I was working with THE Rajesh Khanna, my importance grew. And I gloated in its wake. During the breaks in the shooting of the film I would return to Delhi and gleefully describe the scenes and dialogues of the film, as also its music to all that I met - and I met many during that time ! There were no CD's then, just the spooled tapes, and getting Hrishi da to part with one such for me, was an exercise in futility. But I was able to get one and 'kahin dur jab din dhal jaae ..' played endlessly on my very repair stricken tape recorder.

He was simple and quiet. Would sit in the front seat of his modest Herald, driven by his man-friday Kabir. He would attract many visitors on set and was continuously surrounded by them - Hrishi da permitting ! The frenzy and the following he garnered was a sight to behold. In the 1970 era his fans came from Spain to meet him - a most unheard of occurrence then. In his trade mark Rajesh Khanna kurta pyjama, he almost always looked the boy next door, one that girls would want to take home to Mother. But amidst all this there was a quiet elegance within him. In his boyish plainness there was something that was regal in his demeanor. It was the magnet that attracted others to him - who at times were almost servile to him in nature.

My observation above, does not do justice to what I wish to explain. But then, that itself could be that unspoken accomplishment of his.

I visited his residence 'Aashirwad' just once when we were working together, to wish him on his birthday, only to realize when I reached their, that I had come in a day earlier. He was magnanimous enough to understand my awkwardness and asked me to stay back ; then after a while driving me to Shakti Samanta's ( who made 'Aaradhana' and many other films with him, and 'Great Gambler' and 'Barsaat ki ek Raat' with me ) house to join him for dinner ! The next day on his birthday he hosted me again. Many many years later he had called me to his office to seek the possibility of working for his production, which did not materialize. Then of course my last meeting with him was when IIFA decorated him with a LifeTime Achievement Award and asked me to present it. His gracious words for me still resound.

When the shooting of 'Anand' began at Mohan Studios, Hrishi da's favorite locale, now a concrete housing colony, the one moment that always worried me was, that last scene when I break down after his death and urge him emotionally to speak ! Not being able to find a method in my own very limited acting experience, I sought the help of Mehmood bhai, in who's house I was living with his brother Anwar Ali. And I still remember what he told me -

 He said, " just think Amitabh,  R- a- j- e- s- h  K- h- a- n- n- a  is dead  !! and you will get everything right ".

It was not so much a tutorial in acting that he expounded. It was an exalted acknowledgement of Rajesh Khanna's presence and position in the psyche of the nation, that he was drawing my attention to.

That is how Rajesh Khanna was looked upon from the day he started till his last breath. Times changed, people changed, circumstances changed, but Rajesh Khanna always remained his quiet, elegant, regal self !

As I sat at his home this afternoon, to pay my respects, soon after learning of his passing away, a close functionary of his, came up to me and told me in a choked voice what his last words were -

" time ho gaya hai ! Pack Up ! " 

Amitabh Bachchan

I write to you perhaps for the last time on this platform, as briefed.

  Jalsa , Mumbai                July  9 ,  2012                      Mon  10 : 00 PM

 

 

Dearest Ef .

I write to you perhaps for the last time on this platform, as briefed.

I have had to make a shift in my domain. This has been necessitated because of certain compulsions from my end. My digital domain is now being restructured as per the regulations and desires of my Company and hence this. For those that have been my companions and my extended family, this is where you need to go to read the daily Blog :

SrBachchan.tumblr.com

 

 

tumblr.com, is my new platform and from this moment I shall be putting up my thoughts and words there. I have had a most pleasant conversation with the team at tumblr. in the United States of America a short while ago, and they seemed very excited about our presence on their site. I do hope that you will enjoy this new experience, as much as I look forward to making this fresh beginning.

 

Before I leave, I must bid farewell to bigadda.com and let them know that they were the ones that pioneered this exercise for me, bore up with all the initial starting troubles and my incessant requests for the introduction of various additions that I had asked them of. You have been a marvelous team, bigadda.com and I do not have sufficient words to thank you for all the cooperation and work put in by you in providing me the incentive to be with my followers for these past years. Individually and collectively your team has been with me round the clock and for this I am most grateful. Your efficiency and your dedication in making this platform of mine live and active is beyond measure. Thank you !

 

With great love and affection,

 

Amitabh Bachchan

A visit to a theater by junior showing his latest, an inauguration of a Trade Magazine

Jalsa , Mumbai                    July  8,  2012                                     Sun  11 : 30 PM

 

Prabir Bhatt : a very happy birthday to you ! Love as always … enjoy !! 

 

 

 

A visit to a theater by junior showing his latest, an inauguration of a Trade Magazine, the well wishers on the Sunday, and the four legged that challenges – 'anything you can do I can do better' !! And finally the breaking of British hearts at Wimbledon with Andy Murray losing to the Swiss precise machine, quiet, smooth and accurate – Roger Federer !

 

They are enthusiastic than most other days ! A mid-eastern man grips me and weeps, not quite as publicly as the British ace on Center Court in his runner up speech. They throw bouquets and flowers, some of which have been caught in mid air by some extreme photography. The police jeep has been replaced by the van – a larger contingent of the men in uniform for control, and Shanouk who climbs up the steps to decipher for himself what the entire fuss was about !! All in a days work.

The Trade Magazine inauguration was a quick in and out. Sanjay Dutt in presence, as were many from the trade. Bhawana Somaiya who sits on the Editor in Chief chair, a senior professional journalist and among the few that have conducted themselves with a certain degree of integrity, sings embarrassing praises. I make a quick deliverance cum unveiling and out ! Out into the mob – the modern day paparazzi, blinding the eye with the flash, brushing past your teeth with the microphone, stumbling breaking glassworks and furniture as they match steps demanding a 'chomp'. Just doing their job. That footage of interest that can make news preferably 'breaking', that one odd picture around which an entire column could be devised, the clothing worn, the shoes, the hair, who smiled to whom and who was deliberately ignored. The one that works the most is the one on location. The one that writes is the one that is omni absent ! Great strategy because then you are not obliged to know the fact of the visual, the visual gets you to create the fact. Right or wrong does not matter, so long as it has covered those few minutes on the 'box' or adorned a page on the print !

Tennis has come to an end, at least in the British Isles for now. I believe it shall shift now across the Atlantic to the US of A and the hard courts at Flushing Meadows, the site for the US Open – an informal more casual and greatly relaxed atmosphere, than the 'propaar stiff uppur lip' of Wimbledon – uniformed clothing, uniformed protocol, uniformed pageantry, uniformed etiquette, uniformed greens on court and uniformed audience ! Each blade of the green grass on court measured and cut to exact size, as opposed to the yanks' hard clay court grey and stark, laid back audience, chatting cracking up joke and comment, consuming the hot dog and burger with the largest drinks ever in the entire universe, and with the side attraction of the odd skunk or a larger than normal rat in the stands, amid screams from the ladies !! Not so much Hollywood in attendance as against local popular musicians and singers and the odd Tv personage – the Stars of the Angels better present ringside, at the Lakers game by the NBA court !

Shoot tomorrow for an endorsement for jewelry and later, final sits on the move from one platform to the other in this domain.

The rain it raineth constant ! I pray it reaches the regions and destinations that most need it.

My love to all and with the sweetest of dreams for the night ..

Amitabh Bachchan