New Delhi: On Amitabh Bachchan’s birthday, veteran action director Sham Kaushal shares a heartfelt tribute, reflecting on the superstar’s unmatched discipline, humility, and warmth. From their early days on Mard to later collaborations like Yudh, Sham ji offers rare insights into the man behind the legend — truly one of a kind.
Sham Kaushal wishes for Amit Bachchan on megastar’s 83rd birthday
Many congratulations to Amit ji on his birthday. May he always be healthy and happy. Our industry and the world need more people like him to make it a more beautiful place.
I want to speak not just about Amit ji the actor, but about Amit ji the human being. Everyone knows his brilliance on screen. But I have always believed that Amit ji’s greatness is not by chance. It is the result of his consistency, dedication, hard work, and deep love for his craft.
His talent is undeniable, but what truly defines his success is his discipline and his unwavering commitment to his work. That is what makes him the biggest star. It never happened by fluke.
I have observed him from afar since 1984. My first opportunity to work with him came through my stunt work on films directed by Manmohan Desai and Prakash Mehra. I was part of the stunts department with Pappu Verma, and during Mard, we worked together for almost two hundred days. That was when I saw his dedication up close.
Later, when I became an action director, I worked with him on Yudh and three more films. Across all of them, his work ethic and energy never changed. The way he connects with his work is something I find hard to describe.
In Yudh, for instance, there was a scene where he had mud on his face. He refused to wipe it off because he did not want to break continuity. He would talk to every person involved in the upcoming scenes, from technicians to assistants. He would even instruct his own staff on what kind of padding he would need.
There are countless such stories from every film we worked on. If I were to narrate them all, we would be here for a long time. I truly feel blessed to have worked with him.
A Memory from Mard
When we were shooting Mard in 1984, it was just two years after his terrible accident. But on set, he never let anyone feel that he had gone through something so serious. He built personal connections with every technician and stuntman. It never felt like we were working with a superstar. He made everyone comfortable, kept the mood light, and was always joking around.
That is his speciality. He made everyone feel that he was one of them. He treated everyone like his own.
And of course, his playful side would often come through. There was a fighter on set who could act drunk very convincingly. Amit ji, with his mischievous sense of humour, once told Amrita ji’s dressman that this fighter was an actual alcoholic who had committed a few murders and that no one knew what he might do next. Naturally, everyone got scared.
The fighter joined in on the joke, pretending to be drunk and occasionally pulling out a knife to scare people while making small demands. Amit ji would pretend to scold him, adding to the chaos. The prank went on for quite a while.
That is Amit ji for you. Full of warmth and mischief. On set, he was not The Amitabh Bachchan. He was one of the unit members. Everything he did came from the heart.
Later, when I worked with him again as an action director, his commitment remained unmatched. Despite being a megastar, he never took anything lightly. Not once.
Even today, there is so much to learn from him. If he likes someone’s work, he sends a handwritten letter, a bouquet, or calls them personally. When Masaan released, he watched it and messaged me at one in the night saying, “Vicky is excellent in his first film.” We could not sleep the whole night out of happiness. You do not see that kind of genuine appreciation very often anymore.
When I worked with him as a stuntman, I never once felt a distance. He would appreciate my work, sometimes hug me, and always make everyone feel like a friend.
He performed most of his own action sequences, even though body doubles were available. I often give him as an example. He was not trained in martial arts, yet his action scenes remain iconic because he blended emotion and physicality perfectly.
You could see the emotion on his face — the anger, the intensity, the truth of the moment. Without that, an action scene feels empty. But Amit ji owned every moment. He did not just act in a scene; he uplifted it.
That is the mark of a true artist.