Today is the birthday of the legendary actor of the Indian cinema or as they say ‘Sadi Ka Mahanayak’ (Greatest actor of the century), Mr. Amitabh Bachchan. Many of you might already know this but those who don’t, his actual name initially was Inquilaab Srivastava.
He has had his own ups and downs during his career spanning more than five decades. But the way he emerges out of all the odds is just as spectacular as his acting skills. Popularly referred to as ‘Big B’, Mr. Bachchan earned the title of ‘Angry Young Man’ with his film Deewar and lived it up in films like Agneepath, Kaalia, Don, to name a few.
While his films in the ’70s and ’80s is what made him rise to fame, his films in the past twenty years have been nothing less. The versatility, the finesse and the charisma of Mr. Bachchan’s personality takes every character that he plays a notch higher. So to make it simpler, we have prepared a list of some of his best films in the past two decades available across various OTT platforms. So let’s start – – >
Mohabbatein (2000)
Streaming on: Amazon Prime Video
A romantic musical film with a star-studded line up including Shah Rukh Khan and Aishwarya Rai, other than Amitabh Bachchan. AB plays the role of a strict principal who does not believe in love. The film is pretty lengthy but was quite a hit when it came out.
Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham… (2001)
Streaming on: Amazon Prime Video
Directed by Karan Johar, here too AB has a strict person’s role but this time he is a businessman and a father with some pretty high standards and rules. This family drama is packed with all A listers of the industry including Mr. Bachchan’s wife and a talented actress herself Mrs. Jaya Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan, Hrithik Roshan, Kajol and Kareena Kapoor.
Aankhen (2002)
Streaming on: Amazon Prime Video
This thriller drama revolves around Vijay Singh Rajput (Amitabh Bachchan) who seeks revenge against its former employer bank by planning a heist. But the twist here is that the heist would be done by three blind men whom he trains.
Bhagban (2003)
Streaming on: Amazon Prime Video, SonyLIV
This one has the power to leave you teary eyed every time you watch it. The ordeal of old parents, who sacrificed everything for their children, after their retirement is heart-wrenching. Amitabh Bachchan and Hema Malini’s performance in this family drama will melt your hearts for sure.
Khakee (2004)
Streaming on: Amazon Prime Video
In this action thriller AB dons the role of a police officer who along with his team is on mission to escort an alleged terrorist to Mumbai but the journey isn’t a cakewalk. The power packed performances are a treat to eye and we all remember that catchy song, “Dil Dooba, Dil Dooba..”, don’t we? (We bet you are singing this song right now!)
Black (2005)
Streaming on: YouTube
Well this one is a masterpiece by Sanjay Leela Bhansali. Amitabh Bachchan plays the role of a stubborn teacher who tasks upon himself to help a visually and hearing impaired girl Michelle (Rani Mukherjee) explore her potential, as she takes on the challenge of graduating college. This award-winning film is a must watch.
Bunty Aur Babli (2005)
Streaming on: Amazon Prime Video
This was the first movie where Amitabh Bachchan shared the screen with his son Abhishek Bachchan. An Indian version of the Hollywood film Bonnie and Clyde is fun-filled watch with a catchy and groovy title track.
Sarkar (2005)
Streaming on: Amazon Prime Video
Sarkar is a political crime-thriller directed by Ram Gopal Varma and is based on Al Pacino starrer The Godfather (1972) that itself was based on the best-selling novel of Mario Puzo. The was the first in the trilogy followed by Sarkar Raj (2008) and Sarkar 3 (2017). The film was a blockbuster that premiered at the New York Asian Film Festival.
Nishabd (2007)
Streaming on: Amazon Prime Video, Disney+Hotstar
This was something very different from what Mr. Bachchan had done before and even the concept of the film was not digested by many. AB plays the role of a sixty year old man who falls in love with a much younger teenage girl played by Jiah Khan. This forbidden love story had some very amazing performances.
Cheeni Kum (2007)
Streaming on: Zee5
Thia film by R. Balki might sound little similar to Nishabd but is not all that same. Here AB, who plays the role of a 64 year old chef falls in love with a little older women, a 34-year-old software engineer, Nina (Tabu). Things take a turn when he discovers that Nina’s father is six years junior to him.
Paa (2009)
Streaming on: YouTube
This national award-winning film by R. Balki is one of the finest performance by Amitabh Bachchan. Its the story of a twelve year old boy, Auro (Amitabh Bachchan), who suffers from a rare genetic disorder Progeria. He is raised by his single gynaecologist mother, played by Vidya Balan who hides from him the truth about his father, played by Abhishek Bachchan who is a politician in the film.
Aarakshan (2011)
Streaming on: Amazon Prime Video, Netflix
A film by Prakash Jha starring Amitabh Bachchan, Deepika Padukone, Saif Ali Khan and Manoj Bajpayee is a socio-poltical drama that raised the issue of caste based reservations in Indian government jobs and educational institutions.
Piku (2015)
Streaming on: SonyLIV
This acclaimed film by Shoojit Sircar is the tale of a daughter (Deepika Padukone) and her relation with his eccentric father (Amitabh Bachchan) who has problems with chronic constipation and traces every problem to his bowel movements. The film was a hit and Mr. Bachchan even received a national award for his outstanding performance in it.
Wazir (2016)
Streaming on: Netflix, SonyLIV
Wazir is an action-thriller by director Bejoy Nambiar. An enthralling story of two fathers who are stricken with a similar grief of loosing their daughters. How they get together and plan to take down the enemy is a griping watch. This film written by Vidhu Vinod Chopra was actually meant for a Hollywood release with Dustin Hoffman playing the protagonist. However, its producer died and the film was shelved for nearly eight years and was later made in hindi starring Amitabh Bachchan and Farhan Akhtar in the lead.
Te3n (2016)
Streaming on: SonyLIV
Te3n is a mystery-thriller film which is a remake of a 2013 South Korean film Montage and stars Amitabh Bachchan, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Sabyasachi Chakraborty, Padmavathi Rao and Vidya Balan in the lead roles. A 70 year old man (Amitabh Bachchan) seeks help from a police officer turned priest (Nawazuddin Siddiqui) to find the kidnapper and murderer of his granddaughter, who died eight years ago. The film wasn’t a box office hit but was praised for the performances by the actors.
Pink (2016)
Streaming on: Netflix, Disney+Hotstar
This Indian film is a reflection of how the society treats men and women differently. It showcases how women are judged and criticised every step of the way. In this courtroom drama three young women – Minal (Taapsee Pannu), Falak Ali (Kirti Kulhari) and Andrea (Andrea Tariang) try to file an FIR against Rajveer Singh (Angad Bedi), the relative of a powerful politician, for molestation. They have to face various difficulties when an old lawyer Deepak Sehgal (Amitabh Bachchan) comes to their rescue. The film received praises from all corners.
102 Not Out (2018)
Streaming on: Amazon Prime Video
It is a story of a 102 year old father (Amitabh Bachchan) and his 75 year old son(Rishi Kapoor). While at 102 the father is all lively and chirpy, his son feels quite opposite that he is too old to enjoy life. The brilliant performance by these two industry veterans makes for a fun light-hearted watch.
Badla (2019)
Streaming on: Netflix
Badla was the official remake of the Spanish film “The Invisible Guest” with the gender reversal of the lead roles. The story follows Naina, a successful entrepreneur and married woman, who gets trapped in the case of her lover’s murder. She then hires a reputable lawyer (Amitabh Bachchan) to work with her on the case and find answers. The ending of the film is something to watch out for.
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