Express Adda: Amitabh Bachchan chronicles

At the Express Adda, presented by Reid & Taylor in association with Olive Beach in Delhi last week, Indian cinema's most lauded ambassador Amitabh Bachchan was as profound as he was honest. In conversation with Shekhar Gupta, Editor-in-Chief of The Express Group, Bachchan offered an astute analysis of contemporary India, its middle and working classes, its cinema and celebrity responsibilities and why the clearly emerging Indian identity has a lot to do with the winsome reach of television

When one of the world's most popular celebrities is in the hot seat, curiosity becomes a surging sea of questions. It is difficult to list what Amitabh Bachchan was not asked at the Express Adda. He responded with his characteristic dignity and patience, never once trying to be the man he is not. He spoke about how the Western world had changed the way it saw both India and Indian cinema, and why the kind of cinema neglected so far in the country was coming into prominence. The communicative outreach of television has been both a glue and a social force reflected in the growing influence of the middle class, says Bachchan. He also recited a couplet, addressed questions about his struggles and convictions, talked about himself as a family man, an actor and an observer of modern India.

On punctuality

Ek bahut acha yantr banaya gaya hai jise ghadi kehte hain. Usko main dekh leta hoon aur samay mein pahuch jaata hoon. (There is a very good machine called a watch. I look at that and come on time). I think you just need to honour a commitment if you have taken up a job. There have been many times when I have reached before the main event. There have been many times when I have arrived at the studio for a seven o'clock shift and there was nobody there. So I utilise the time to water the plants and clean up the floor and things like that.

... contd.

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