Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan recently shared an anecdote about how Farhan Akhtar made him feel like a ‘nausikhiya’ during the Lakshya shoot.
Now, in a conversation with Aap Ki Adalat, Farhan has reacted to it, revealing he never intended to ‘teach’ acting to Big B and later realised that he might have hurt him.
Farhan Akhtar on working with Big B in Lakshya
When asked about trying to ‘teach’ Amitabh Bachchan acting during Lakshya, despite being a first-time director, Farhan said it was never his intention. He explained that it was the first day of shooting in an Army cantonment, and as a young, first-time director, he was trying to familiarise himself with the discipline associated with Army life.
He recalled that everything there was so time-driven that he didn’t have the liberty to exceed the time allotted by the authorities. He added that all of this led to him feeling stressed about completing the shoot on time without any delay or lag so that he wouldn’t have to seek permission again.
Farhan then recalled his interaction with Big B on set and said, “So it was his first day, and he was taking time to get it done in terms of performance. And from my end I was only thinking there is so much pressure upon me, so if I just go and talk to him in a room about if he is facing any difficulty, or I can help in understanding, so that from there onwards, we are efficient on set.”
He added, “It is very much possible that this enthusiasm of mine, might have not gone well with him, that a young director is telling him if there is any problem, let’s talk about it. It could possibly would have hurt him. So I understood this later that he might have felt bad and I did apologise to him for that. And as I said my intention wasn’t that, it was simply that whatever we were doing if we could just speed it up.”
What Amitabh Bachchan had said about working with Farhan Akhtar in Lakshya
During Kaun Banega Crorepati 17, Farhan, along with his father and veteran lyricist Javed Akhtar, came to the show to celebrate Big B’s birthday. During the episode, Big B recalled how, for the first time, he was exposed to an atmosphere that was quite new to him. While he usually remained relaxed on sets, that wasn’t the case there. He revealed that he couldn’t get his dialogue out properly and that several retakes were happening, which he found a bit embarrassing.
He then shared his experience of working with Farhan and said, “My experience of working with him on the film was… he came to my room at night and asked, ‘Amit uncle, are you having some problem?’. Hamein laga ki yeh ustaad hai jo hamein keh rahein hai ‘beta, acting aise hoti hai’ (I thought I was an amateur, and this master was teaching me how to act).”
He added, “The moment Farhan left my room, I called my wife, Jaya (Jaya Bachchan). I was very emotional and told her about what happened and said, ‘They are telling me that I don’t know how to act.’ She told me, ‘Amit ji, if you are not happy, then pack your bags and come back.’ I thought that leaving might worsen things, but after that night, I became very comfortable, and the rest of the shoot was very nice.”
About Lakshya
The film marked Farhan’s directorial debut in Bollywood. The 2004 war drama also featured Hrithik Roshan and Preity Zinta in lead roles. Set against the backdrop of the Kargil conflict, the film failed at the box office but gained a cult following later.
Farhan Akhtar and Amitabh Bachchan’s upcoming movies
Farhan will next be seen in the film 120 Bahadur. Helmed by Razneesh Ghai, the film stars Farhan as Major Shaitan Singh, along with Raashii Khanna, Vivian Bhatena and Ankit Siwach in key roles. The film is scheduled to release in theatres on November 21.
Big B, on the other hand, is currently busy hosting Kaun Banega Crorepati 17. He will next be seen in the sequel to Kalki 2898 AD. Directed by Nag Ashwin, the film will also star Prabhas and Kamal Haasan in lead roles and will go on floors in December this year.