“Left College, Made Tea On Set”

Abhishek in a throwback with Big B. (courtesy: bachchan)

New Delhi:

Abhishek Bachchan recently opened up about the “rough time” his family faced before his Bollywood debut. Abhishek made his big screen debut with the 2000 film, Refugee. The JP Dutta directorial also marked Kareena Kapoor’s debut. In a roundtable discussion with Galatta Plus, Abhishek said, “I left my college and came back. My father (Amitabh Bachchan) was going through a bit of a rough time financially. He had opened a company which had racked up a lot of losses. So I said, ‘I need to be around my father.'” Abhishek then talked about how he even worked as a production boy for Gautam Berry and made tea on the set. Abhishek, who always aspired to be an actor, added that no director was ready to take on the responsibility of launching Amitabh Bachchan’s son. 

Abhishek Bachchan also revealed how he and his friend, Rakesh Mehra, decided to take matters into their own hands and wrote a script, which was ultimately rejected by Amitabh Bachchan. 

Talking about the financial crisis, Abhishek Bachchan shared, “Filmfare, 20 years ago, you planned like months in advance ki kya pehen ke jayenge [ That what you will wear.] Make sure you aren’t shooting that day…Khareedna padta tha, un dino me koi deta nahi tha kapde [One had to purchase, and no one sent clothes those days.] It was a big thing. The entire industry showed up. Filmfare and screen were the only big awards then, before this plethora of awards. It was an occasion. It was a huge honour. I said, ‘What to wear?’ I know it sounds weird. I didn’t have that many clothes, and we couldn’t afford to. We were going through a rough time, and trying to be as frugal as you could be.”

“I didn’t know what to wear. I didn’t think it was prudent to show up in jeans and a T-shirt. So, the sherwani that was made for my sister’s (Shweta Bachchan) wedding a couple of years earlier, I wore that and I went,” Abhishek Bachchan added.

Abhishek Bachchan then recalled that JP Dutta won the Best Director award for Border that year. As he was walking down the stage, he spotted Abhishek sitting alongside Amitabh Bachchan. Two days later, JP Dutta offered Abhishek his first film.

After Refugee, Abhishek Bachchan featured in Bunty Aur Babli, Dhoom, Main Prem Ki Diwani Hoon, and Delhi 6. His latest appearance was in Ghoomer alongside Saiyami Kher.