National Award is a godsend for AB Corp: Amitabh Bachchan (Interview)

NEW DELHI - Amitabh Bachchan says four National Film Awards for “Paa”, including the best actor honour for him, are a morale booster for his company AB Corp that “has been through some terrible times”.

“For AB Corp this has been a godsend and we are really, really happy for a company that has been through some terrible times,” Amitabh, 67, told IANS in a telephonic interview from Mumbai.

“I think this is a fantastic endorsement of its capability of wanting to get back. Which is why I give a lot of credit to Abhishek because it was his decision and it was his work that made AB Corp produce this film.”

Amitabh bagged his fourth national honour at the 57th National Film Awards Wednesday for his performance as a 13-year-old progeria patient Auro in R. Balki’s “Paa”, which also won for best makeup, best supporting actress and best Hindi film.

“Paa” is his son Abhishek’s first production venture made under the AB Corp banner.

An elated Amitabh said: “I am so honoured that both Abhishek and me will be there personally to receive the award from the president of India.

“We want to continue making films. We were very hesitant because we’ve had so many failures in the past but with this success, yes, we are inspired…We will continue to make films in the regional cinema.”

“(I am) very happy for Balki because it was his vision. I felt happy for Abhishek because he took the decision to produce the film. I didn’t know that we had won four awards and obviously this is the icing on the cake. So very, very happy for everyone involved in it,” he added.

“Since its very inception, AB Corp has been making films in Tamil, Telugu, Marathi and we will continue to do that. We have sponsored films that are made in Bengali and we will continue this process. There are various scripts that are coming in from both Marathi producers and directors and we are studying that.”

While actors his age shy away from experimenting, this star has always managed to drop jaws by doing the unthinkable.

“What can I say? I just consider myself very fortunate that there are people who still want to test me and throw challenges to me. I am very happy because as an actor you are always looking forward to doing something different, new and exciting.

“And I am really, really grateful to the almighty for this streak of luck and good fortune that there are people who still want to work with me,” he said.

How does Big B judge himself?

“I think every day is a new craft that we need to learn. In the creative field one should never be satisfied. The moment I would say that I am satisfied, that would be the end of my career. For an artist that’s a terrible thing to live in. So I hope that there is something new for me to learn in the years to come or in the days to come,” he said.

Amitabh had earlier received the National Award for “Saat Hindustani”, “Agneepath” and “Black”. He is a legend and in his 41-year-long innings he has been honoured with the Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan.

So is a Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian honour, also on the way?

“No. No. Of course not. I am not worthy of that in the first place. We don’t look forward to that. These are very honourable and very big recognitions,” he said.

What does the megastar have next in his kitty to surprise his audiences and admirers?

“I don’t know what they will expect. Let’s see what kind of roles are coming. Obviously we can’t repeat another Auro, but let’s see… the world is full of surprises,” he said.

“Balki and me, we keep meeting. We have three or four ideas which we want to do next. I think some of them are very exciting and different,” added the legend, who starts shooting next month for Rajkumar Santoshi’s film.

Amitabh’s acting projects include Puri Jagannath’s next, Prakash Jha’s “Aarakshan” and Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra’s production. He returns on the small-screen with the fourth season of successful quiz show “Kaun Banega Crorepati”.

(Robin Bansal can be contacted at robin.b@ians.in)