Big B, the original megastar of Bollywood turns 72

Amitabh Bachchan - The name itself conjures up a larger-than-life image, which has become immortalised with the passage of time. The angry young man, who came all the way from Allahabad with stars in his eyes, went on to be the actor of the Millennium in a poll with the likes of Charlie Chaplin, Sir Lawrence Olivier, and Marlon Brando in contest.

Big B is the son of well-known writer and poet Harivanshrai Bachchan, Amitabh, after completing his schooling in Nainital and graduation in Delhi, went back to Calcutta where he worked as a stage actor, radio announcer and a freight company executive in Shaw Wallace. But his growing interest in movies over the years made him come to Bombay in 1968 with an ambition to make it big in films.

But success was not an overnight phenomenon. After a couple of insignificant movies, he grabbed the super hit Zanjeer (1973) that was to shape his future to come. In an era of romantic films of the superstar Rajesh Khanna, his image of an 'Angry Young Man' went down extremely well with the masses.

The successful trio Amitabh Bachchan, Prakash Mehra, Manmohan Desai. What followed were box office hits like Sholay, Amar Akbar Anthony, Trishul, Don and Deewar.

In 1983 when Amitabh was shooting for Coolie, he got injured on an on the sets. Millions of fans prayed for him and kept track of the news that featured daily bulletins on his health.

In 1984, Bachchan briefly entered politics in support of long-time family friend Rajiv Gandhi. He contested Allahabad's parliament seat against H. N. Bahuguna, a well-known politician and won (winning 68.2% of the vote). However, his political career was short-lived; he resigned after three years before finishing his term. At the time of his resignation, it was rumored that he might have been involved in the Bofors scandal.

A miraculous recovery was the mark of a second coming for Amitabh, and movies like Sharaabi, Mard, Hum followed. Though he was getting roles, none were making a significant impact. After a six-year sabbatical, Mrityudata came to Amitabh at the age of 55. Though the movie was seen as a comeback, it bombed at the box-office and the critics wrote off this superstar, bringing his career to tatters.

Many of his films did very poorly, such as Jaadugar and Toofan, both from 1989. In the early 1990s he regained some success in Hum (1991) which was a huge hit due to a popular song Jumma Chumma.

Before entering the film industry, Bachchan auditioned at the Delhi station of All India Radio to act in plays. He was turned down because of his unusual voice.

But the new Millennium had a new beginning. In 2000, he was chosen as the host for a new game show, Kaun Banega Crorepati. Amitabh was a suave, assured host and the show became an enormous hit. Critics finally admitted that Amitabh still had box-office magic.

Amitabh was seen again in movies like Aks, Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham, Kaante, Boom, Dev, Armaan, Lakshy and Deewar. Bachchan again struck gold with Baghban, where he played Raj Malhotra, the loving father who sacrificed everything to nurture his four children, but was left abandoned by them in the end.

His close connections with Mulayam Singh Yadav and Amar Singh landed him in trouble in May 2007 as the new government led by Mayawati in Uttar Pradesh, instigated an inquiry into the purchase of farming land by Bachchan. Under the state rules, farming land could only be purchased by bonafide farmers. It's alleged that the Bollywood legend declared him a farmer to benefit from the scheme. Mr. Bachchan denies any wrong doing.

In a poll conducted by Channel 4 Film, he was voted the '92nd Greatest Movie Star of All Time'. Bachchan is the only Indian actor on the list, which is dominated by American actors.

One of his most memorable performances during this period has been as Rani Mukherji's tutor in the Sanjay Leela Bhansali film, Black. The man simply created magic with his role in the movie.

Then came Bunty Aur Bubli, where Amitabh came together for the first time with his son, Abhishek Bachchan. The two were again seen together in RGV'S Sarkar, where he played a messianic saviour-of-the-masses hero, Subhash Nagare.

Bollywood Actor Amitabh Bachchan at Jaipur Literature Festival in Jaipur, Rajasthan, India. He came to launch the titled Bachchanalia.

Amitabh Bachchan's mother, Teji Bachchan, died in a Mumbai hospital in 2007 after prolonged illness. She was 93.

He is a passionate advocate of vegetarianism and animal rights. At IIFA 2007, he turned 'Green' and 'Cool' to promote the cause of environment. He was voted also hottest male vegetarian by the animal welfare organisation Peta for two years running.

Amitabh Bachchan on  the sets of Seedhi Baat, a popular TV show aired on Aaj Tak in New Delhi.

He is the first Indian actor to have been immortalised in wax at Madame Tussauds Wax Museum in London.

He has won fourteen Filmfare Awards in various categories. The most recent one being the 2006 Filmfare Best Actor Award for his role in the film Black and his most recognizable Filmfare Award was when he won the Star of the 20th Century Award.

Amitabh was chosen Superstar of the Millennium, easing out giants like Sir Lawrence Olivier and Charlie Chaplin on a BBC online poll.

Bachchan has received the Padma Shri (1983) and Padma Bhushan (2005) civilian honours from the Indian government. He has won the National Award thrice. For Saat Hindustani (Best Newcomer) in 1970, for Agneepath (Best Actor) in 1991, and finally for Black (Best Actor) in 2006. He was conferred with an honorary degree of Doctorate of Arts by De Montfort University in Leicester, UK on July 19, 2006 in recognition of his distinguished career in films.