New Delhi: The megastar of Hindi film industry, Amitabh Bachchan, is celebrating his 80th birthday today. It would not be an exaggeration to say that Amitabh Bachchan is the biggest superstar in this country. His career spanning over five decades has won over the hearts of the entire nation. He is one of the most loved individuals in the country. Yet there was a time when this love was dwindling. This was the time when the megastar had forayed into politics.
In 1984, Bachchan took a break from acting and briefly entered politics in support of a long-time family friend, Rajiv Gandhi. He won the 8th Lok Sabha election with over 68% votes in his favour. However, he resigned from his seat in July 1987 after there were allegations levelled against him about his involvement in the Bofors scandal.
But according to Amitabh that was not the main reason why he quit politics. The reason why he quit politics was influenced by a small incident in Assam.
What Happened In Assam That Made Bachchan Think About His Political Career?
Amitabh Bachchan himself in a blog mentioned that while campaigning in Assam for the Congress, an error of judgment forced his helicopter to land at the wrong destination. It belonged to the opposition. There was an instant physical reaction and the pilot made a hurried exit. A young student somehow managed to break the cordon, ran up to him, and gave him a piece of paper. This paper triggered Amitabh a lot.
The piece of paper read,” Mr Bachchan, I am a big fan of yours, but I am with the opposite party. Please leave this state, you are making life very difficult for me for I am torn between two desires.”
This letter made Big B think hard about his political future. The Shehenshaah was in a state of conflict. By Amitabh’s own admission, “It was one emotional plea that left me thinking long and hard.”
“I felt for 25 years I had tried to woo my audience to love me as an artiste as an actor. And once I had accomplished that I was now telling them to love my politics as well. Not acceptable to me. It was wrong. I was dividing my audience and my fans,” Big B wrote in his blog.
It was this incident which ultimately decided the fate of Amitabh’s political career.
In all his recent interviews, the Superstar has maintained that he doesn’t understand politics and ‘there’s absolutely no question of his getting into it ‘in any capacity.