Big B Says He's Become Religious

JAN 18 - Amithji (aka Big B, Amitabh Bachchan) says he has become religious after a series of lifelong medical problems, including a crippling neuromuscular disease and an accident on the film set that mangled a hand, a newspaper reported on Wednesday.

Big B has appeared in more than 150 movies over three decades.

�The amount of things I have been through and the remarkable ways in which the body has reacted is just phenomenal,� Bachchan was quoted as saying in The Times of India newspaper. �No wonder I became religious, because you don�t know why something�s happening to you and you don�t know how you bounced back.�

Bachchan made his remarks in a lengthy interview that featured rare comments on his health.

Recently he announced he may soon revisit a temple in Andhra Pradesh to offer diamond ornaments worth Rs.10 crores to Lord Venkateshwara. The icon, who along with wife Jaya Bachchan and son Abhishek Bachchan had offered prayers at the temple Dec 28 and 29 following a speedy recovery from an illness, offered to donate the jewelry as thanksgiving.

His career has seen its ups and downs _ something that has affected the tempo of his activities.

He witnessed a slump and major financial losses in the 1990s after attempting film production _ and has worked much harder since to pay back creditors.

Apart from films, Bachchan has also made a foray into television _ path-breaking because most Bollywood actors consider it a career downgrade _ and anchored India�s hugely successful version of �Who Wants to Be a Millionaire,� widely known as KBC (Kaun Banga Crorepati)

�I knew that if something went wrong with me physically, I would lose the opportunity of earning this money, which I was going to use to pay back my creditors,� he said.

He had a two-and-a-half year contract, and the show�s success has led to the launch of KBC-2.

Then, in the midst of the KBC series, a cancer scare sent him for a loop.

Big B

�I suddenly developed severe back and neck problems,� Bachchan said. �The doctors discovered some lumps everywhere and they said, `We suspect cancer.� I was destroyed thinking about what will happen to my commitments.�

After 10 days of tests, doctors ruled out cancer but put Bachchan on a debilitating medication that, he said, �knocks you out, because it can affect your liver, and several other organs.�

His most famous brush with death came in 1982 when he fell on a table during a fighting scene and suffered a deep gash from broken glass. Millions prayed for him and the ailment became something of a national emergency.

In 1983, he suffered from Myasthenia Gravis, a crippling neuromuscular disorder.

�My knees gave way,� Bachchan said. �I went into medication for seven to eight years.�

The following year an explosive accidentally went off in his hand during a shoot, rendering his fist into what he called a �meatball,� and forcing him to keep it in his pocket during the entire film.

�Everyone said, `Ah, some style,� Bachchan related. �But I was actually hiding my hand.�

Big B Eyed For Film on Canada's Dark History

JAN 17 - Fresh from her success in Water, Indo-Canadian director Deepa Mehta is eyeing several Bollywood big names for her planned feature on one of Canada�s darkest moments in history � the Komagata Maru incident.

Producers of the movie to be directed by Mehta are reportedly eyeing Bollywood legend Amitabh Bachchan for the lead role.

�The hero of my most ambitious and expensive film has to be a man of substance, stature and wisdom. I can�t think of anyone else but Bachchan,� said Mehta.

Seema Biswas, who has been critically acclaimed in the international press for Water, and John Abraham will also play key roles in Komagata Maru.

British actor Terence Stamp is to play the crucial role of a lawyer.

The story of Komagata Maru starts in 1914, when a fairly well off Sikh, Gurdit Singh, living in Malaysia, decided to challenge the law by sending a shipload of Indians to Canada as immigrants.

He charted the Komagata Maru, a Japanese steamliner which after much trouble with authorities upped-anchor on April 4 with 150 Sikh passengers.

More passengers were picked up on the way.

When Komagata Maru made it to Shanghai, a German cable company sent a message to the German press announcing the departure of the steamer Komagata Maru from Shanghai for Vancouver on April 14 with �400 Indians on board.�

The news of its departure reached the British Columbia authorities. Their instant reaction was that �Hindus would never be allowed to land in Canada.�

On May 23, 1914, the Komagata Maru reached Vancouver and anchored near Burrard Inlet.

For two months the passengers of the Komagata Maru, the Indians in British Columbia, and the authorities of British Columbia were involved in a heated legal battle.

John Abraham

In the end, only 24 passengers were given permission to legally stay in Canada and the ship was forced to return to Hong Kong.

Meanwhile, Mehta�s �Water� which has been making waves in Canada has been listed as one of the top 10 films of 2005 in Canada.

The film set in 1938 colonial India depicts the plight of widows and the injustice meted out to women.

�Water�, last of Mehta�s trilogy after �Fire� and �Earth�, was a runaway hit when it was released in Canada as people there could identify with the film�s content.

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