In rare interview, Amitabh Bachchan weighs in what would have happened if Zanjeer released before Anand

Amitabh Bachchan is probably the biggest superstar India has ever witnessed, but his journey has been full of paradoxes.

Amitabh Bachchan, the first pan-India superstar of the Indian cinema, has seen the highs and lows of everything. At one point of time, he was almost on the verge of leaving Mumbai, the hub of Hindi films. However, as fate would have it, he turned out to be the most revered actor of Bollywood. Films like Zanjeer and Anand have played a big role in his stardom.

In an old Doordarshan interview, which has been put out by the channel on YouTube, Amitabh Bachchan talks about his circumstances and how his career took shape in the initial phase of his film career. In this rare video, he speaks about the difference in characterisation of the two films. While he played a simple doctor in Anand, his acting arc was totally different in Zanjeer where he played a hot-headed police officer fed up with corruption.

In the interview, he said, “Had Zanjeer come before Anand, it would have been very different for me. The character in Zanjeer was so powerful that it would have overshadowed all other characters. The Babu Moshai in Anand was in a way like Zanjeer’s cop because he also had a hidden desire to revolt in him, which was noticed by very few. He was also revolting against the norms of doctors.”

Anand and Zanjeer were directed by two directors with stark differences in functioning style. While Anand was directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Zanjeer was helmed by Prakash Mehra. Nevertheless, these films made Amitabh Bachchan the star he is today.