Before Amitabh Bachchan became the towering legend of Indian cinema, there was a time when he lived with deep professional insecurity and fear of rejection. Film historian and writer Hanif Zaveri recently revealed that the megastar went through a painful phase early in his career when he believed his acting days were numbered — that no filmmaker would ever offer him a role again.
Zaveri shared that during this uncertain period, Bachchan was dropped from several projects, often without explanation. “He was ousted from so many films,” Zaveri said, explaining that the industry’s faith in the young actor wavered after a string of box-office failures. Those early years were marked by one disappointment after another; producers began to see him as a risk rather than a rising star.
For a man who would later define the very idea of a Hindi-film hero, the experience was crushing. Bachchan reportedly confided to close friends that he feared his time in the spotlight had ended before it had even properly begun. “He was scared no one would give him movies,” Zaveri said.
A Career on the Brink
In the early 1970s, Amitabh Bachchan was not the superstar the world now knows. After making his debut in Saat Hindustani (1969), he acted in several films that failed to find audiences. The tall, brooding newcomer did not fit the mold of traditional romantic heroes, and filmmakers were unsure how to cast him. At one point, according to industry insiders, he was even replaced in Shaque by Vinod Khanna after multiple flops.
As rejection piled up, Bachchan began contemplating alternatives. Zaveri revealed that he considered turning producer just to stay connected with cinema. On the advice of filmmaker Hrishikesh Mukherjee, he even planned to start a production company — though he preferred to keep his name off the banner to avoid drawing attention to his precarious situation.
The Turning Point
What came next is the stuff of cinematic legend. Director Prakash Mehra offered Bachchan the lead role in Zanjeer (1973) after several bigger names — including Dev Anand, Dharmendra, and Raj Kumar — had turned it down. The film’s success transformed him overnight from a struggling actor into the face of a new kind of hero: angry, intense, and unafraid to challenge the system.
But even this victory did not erase the memory of earlier struggles. As Zaveri points out, the humility and discipline that define Bachchan’s persona today are rooted in that early fear of failure. He learned, very early in life, how fickle the film world could be — how quickly fortunes could change, and how easily success could slip away.
Lessons from the Legend
Amitabh Bachchan’s journey is a reminder that even the brightest stars begin in darkness. Behind the decades of superstardom — from Deewar and Sholay to Piku and Pink — lies the story of a man who once doubted his own worth.
Zaveri’s revelation offers a rare glimpse into the vulnerability of an actor now regarded as invincible. It shows that perseverance, not luck alone, carved Bachchan’s path to greatness. The very man who feared that “no one would give him movies” went on to become the heartbeat of Indian cinema, inspiring generations of artists to push through rejection and keep believing in their craft.
