Bachchan Brand Eroded

Time was when Amitabh Bachchan guaranteed box-office hits. If not a hit, his presence at least ensured that the film would be an acclaimed one, when released. But in the recent past, Bachchan seems to have eroded all that he built over the years, by acting in so many films which are neither box-office bonanzas nor even critically acclaimed. Whether it was Nishabd or Ram Gopal Varma Ki Aag, Aladin, Rann or this week’s Teen Patti, the films would’ve gone completely unnoticed had it not been for some controversy or tale around it. And if there were no stories around them, they did go almost unnoticed. In other words, the presence of Amitabh Bachchan in their cast made very little difference to the aforementioned and several other films. And there’s nothing to dispute in this because the dismal initials of these films prove the observation.

This must be such a comedown for a superstar whose very name in the cast of a film, at one time, saw crowds thronging to the cinemas. It would shock many to know that the 10 am show of Teen Patti had to be almost cancelled in a cinema of Delhi on the opening day because of absence of audience. Luckily for the film and the cinema, around four persons came at the eleventh hour and saved the day. In most other cinemas across the nation, the attendance in the first show was dismally low – maybe, 10 or 20 people only! High time, Bachchan did a rethink on whether it is worth his while to act in films which may ultimately not even open at the scheduled time due to no show by the paying public.