He may have successfully completed four decades in the film industry, but Bollywood icon Amitabh Bachchan says that he still faces pre-release jitters because he is a “huge pessimist” by nature.
The 67-year-old actor better known as the Big B, will be seen playing a flamboyant genie ‘Genius’, in his upcoming film Aladin and said that the negativity sets in before each release.
“I am a huge pessimist. Every time I do a film I feel like it is going to be a big flop,” Bachchan told.
The megastar also confessed that he gave a hard time to his director Sujoy Ghosh, but finally stopped meddling when he saw the first two reels of the film.
“I was constantly yelling at him, telling him ‘You have not got this right, you have not got that right’.. And two days ago I pressurised him to show me something of the film and he showed me two reels and that forced me to zip up,” said the actor adding that it was Sujoy who put the ‘joy’ into the movie.
The film is a modern interpretation of the age-old fairytale of Aladinand the Magic Lamp and Bachchan said that his grandchildren were excited about seeing him on screen as Genie.
“My two grandchildren have already seen most of the film and they are the ones who are the most excited about it.
Though my wife is not happy that the film is being promoted as a children’s film because she feels that there is some adult material in there,” said the actor who plays a “naughty” genie in the film, which releases on October 30.
“My genie is actually inspired by Sujoy Ghosh, the director. The genie in the film is not a huge apparition wearing harem pants and a felt cap. He is naughty and often tricks Ritesh just for the sake of a chuckle. He actually wants to grant him the three wishes quickly so that he can then retire,” said Bachchan.
While the genie might be keen to hang up his boots, retirement is far from Bachchan’s mind.
At the age of 67, Big B is enjoying a peak in his career with the best of roles coming his way, be it a genie or a man aging backwards in his next film Paa .
