Amitabh Bachchan

Amitabh Bachchan (born as Amitabh Srivastava; 11 October 1942 ) is an Indian actor who works in Hindi cinema.

With a cinematic journey spanning over five decades, he has played pivotal roles in over 200 films.

Widely recognised as one of the most accomplished and influential actors in the history of Indian cinema.*

Bachchan was born in 1942 in Allahabad (now Prayagraj) to the Hindi poet Harivansh Rai Bachchan and his wife, the social activist Teji Bachchan.

He was educated at Sherwood College, Nainital, and Kirori Mal College, University of Delhi.

Bachchan was born on 11 October 1942 in Allahabad (now Prayagraj) to the Hindi poet Harivansh Rai Bachchan, and social activist Teji Bachchan.

Harivansh Rai Bachchan was an Awadhi Hindu Kayastha, who was fluent in Awadhi, Hindi and Urdu.

Harivansh's ancestors came from a village called Babupatti, in the Raniganj tehsil, in the Pratapgarh district, in the present-day state of Uttar Pradesh, in India.

Teji Bachchan was a Punjabi Sikh Khatri from Lyallpur, Punjab, British India (present-day Faisalabad, Punjab, Pakistan).

Bachchan has a younger brother, Ajitabh who is 5 years younger to him.

Bachchan's parents were initially going to name him Inquilaab (Hindustani for "Revolution"), inspired by the phrase Inquilab Zindabad (which translates into English as "Long live the revolution") popularly used during the Indian independence struggle; the name Amitabh was suggested to his father by poet Sumitranandan Pant.

Although his surname was Shrivastava, Amitabh's father, who opposed the caste system, had adopted the pen name Bachchan ("child-like" in colloquial Hindi), under which he published all of his works.

When his father was looking to get him admitted to a school, he and Bachchan's mother decided the family's name should be Bachchan instead of Shrivastava.

It is with this last name that Amitabh debuted in films and used for all other practical purposes, Bachchan has become the surname for all of his immediate family.

He graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree from Kirori Mal College in 1962.

When Bachchan finished his studies his father approached Prithviraj Kapoor, the founder of Prithvi Theatre and patriarch of the Kapoor acting family, to see if there was an opening for him, but Kapoor offered no encouragement.

Bachchan was a friend of Rajiv Gandhi and Sanjay Gandhi, before he became an actor.

He used to spend time with them when he was a resident in New Delhi.

Bachchan's family were very close to the Nehru-Gandhi family of politicians.

His film career started in 1969 as a voice narrator in Mrinal Sen's film Bhuvan Shome.

He first gained popularity in the early 1970s for films, such as Anand, Zanjeer, Roti Kapada Aur Makaan, Deewaar and Sholay, and achieved greater stardom in later years, dubbed India's "angry young man" for several of his on-screen roles in Hindi films.

He consistently starred in top grossing Indian films with critical acclaim since mid 1970s to 80s, such as Kabhi Kabhie, Hera Pheri, Amar Akbar Anthony, Don, Trishul, Muqaddar Ka Sikander, Suhaag, Dostana, Naseeb, Laawaris, Namak Halaal, Coolie, Sharaabi and Mard, as well as some of his most acclaimed performances, include Namak Haraam, Abhimaan, Majboor, Mili, Chupke Chupke, Kaala Patthar, Shaan, Silsila, Kaalia, Satte Pe Satta, Shakti, Aakhree Raasta, Shahenshah, Main Azaad Hoon and Agneepath.

He also entered politics for a time in the 1980s.

Bachchan has also been involved in several humanitarian works and he is a leading brand endorser in India.

Beyond the Indian subcontinent, he acquired a large overseas following of the South Asian diaspora, as well as others, in markets including Africa (South Africa, Eastern Africa, and Mauritius), the Middle East (especially UAE and Egypt), the United Kingdom, Russia, Central Asia, the Caribbean (Guyana, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago), Oceania (Fiji, Australia, and New Zealand), Canada and the United States.

The Government of India honoured him with the Padma Shri in 1984, the Padma Bhushan in 2001, the Padma Vibhushan in 2015, and India's highest award in the field of cinema, the Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 2018 for his contributions to the arts.

After taking a break from acting in the 1990s, his resurgence was marked in 2000 with Mohabbatein.

Since then he starred in several successful and acclaimed films like Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, Aankhen, Baghban, Khakee, Black, Bunty Aur Babli, Sarkar, Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna, Paa, Piku, Pink and Badla.

For Piku, he won his fourth National Film Award for Best Actor, making him the only actor to do so.

Bachchan was voted the "greatest star of stage or screen" by BBC Your Millennium online poll in 1999.

In October 2003, TIME magazine dubbed Bachchan the "Star of the Millennium".

Bachchan's father died in 2003, and his mother in 2007.

Bachchan's secondary education was at Boys' High School & College in Allahabad and Sherwood College in Nainital.

He attended Kirori Mal College at the University of Delhi in Delhi.

The Government of France honoured him with its highest civilian honour, Knight of the Legion of honour, in 2007 for his exceptional career in the world of cinema and beyond.

In addition to acting, Bachchan has worked as a playback singer, film producer, and television presenter.

He has hosted several seasons of the game show Kaun Banega Crorepati, India's version of the game show franchise, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?.

Bachchan also made an appearance in a Hollywood film, The Great Gatsby (2013), in which he played a non-Indian Jewish character.

He has won numerous accolades in his career, including record four National Film Awards in Best Actor category and many awards at international film festivals and award ceremonies.

He has won sixteen Filmfare Awards and is the most nominated performer in any major acting category at Filmfare with 34 nominations in Best Actor and 42 nominations overall.