We dug out a few statements made by Shatrughan Sinha about Amitabh Bachchan in his biography titled 'Anything But Khamosh: The Shatrughan Sinha Biography'.
Veteran actor Shatrughan Sinha has been a member of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for a very long time. He even went on to become a Cabinet Minister when Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the Prime Minister of the country. Sinha was the Minister of Health and Family Welfare from 2002 to 2003. He went on to become Union Cabinet Minister of Shipping in 2003-2004. He contested Lok Sabha elections from Patna Sahib constituency.
However, Shatrughan has quit BJP and has decided to join the Congress Party. Talking about the same, he had said to ANI, "Joining will happen soon, we will give you positive news during Navaratri. I will join Congress now." Sinha met Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Thursday and during the press meet, he declared that he will soon be joining UPA.
Amidst this huge news, the veteran actor's controversy around his contemporary Amitabh Bachchan has started making the rounds. In his book, Anything But Khamosh: The Shatrughan Sinha Biography, the actor-politician recalled several incidents with Big B and even made controversial statements which grabbed many eyeballs.
Take a look at them below:
1. When Shatrughan Sinha felt that he was dropped out of films due to Amitabh Bachchan
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"People say that Amitabh and I made a dynamic pair on screen but if he did not wish to work with me, if he felt that in Naseeb, Shaan, Dostana or Kaala Patthar Shatrughan Sinha bhari pad gaya (having Sinha around worked against him), it didn’t affect me. There were so many films that I dropped out of and returned the signing amount. There was a film called Patthar Ke Log – one of Prakash Mehra’s – written by Salim-Javed...so many films that I gave up without a backward glance because of Amitabh Bachchan."
2. The fight scene in 'Kaala Patthar'
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"There was a fight sequence in Kaala Patthar which I had been told would be an equal fight. But along with fight master Shetty who is no more, it was changed to Amitabh beating the hell out of me, beating me constantly until Shashi Kapoor separated us. On this point, I had to put my foot down and protest that this was not what had been narrated to me I had to argue this out and shooting was stopped for three to four hours which irked Amitabh."
3. An argument between Big B and 'Dostana' director!
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Once, Amitabh had wanted the scene done in a particular way and Raj Khosla, the director, didn’t oblige him. Amitabh had hit out so belligerently, almost abusively, that a senior like Raj Khosla was reduced to tears. Rajji couldn’t believe that he could be talked to in such a manner by an actor.
4. Bachchan had problems with Sinha getting applauded for his performance
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The problem was the applause I was getting for my performances. Amitabh could see the response I was getting. That’s why he didn’t want me in some of his films.
5. Zeenat Aman and Rekha added fuel to the fire?
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People say that Zeenat Aman or Rekha also contributed a little to the rift. Maybe they didn’t like something about me and they said something to Amitabh Bachchan, or maybe they said things about me because I knew a lot about them. To strengthen their position, they would be by Amitabh’s side.
6. When Shatrughan recommended movies to Amitabh
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It is true that I also recommended Amitabh for films. I had recommended him to Late Sultan Ahmed.
7. Never travel together!
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On the sets of Kaala Patthar, the chair next to Amitabh would not be offered to me, nor would his umbrella be ever trained to cover any of us. We’d be heading from the location towards the same hotel but he’d sit in his car and never say, ‘Let’s go together’. I found it all very strange and wondered why this was happening because I never had any complaints against him.
8. Not indulging in empty flattery!
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I’ve seen him as a friend, we’ve worked together as colleagues, we’ve sailed together in good times and bad, I have good memories also. For that reason, though people say she is short-tempered, you’d never hear me say a word against Jaya Bachchan... Besides, my clashes with Amitabh have always been issue-based. If I like a performance, I will praise him. But I don’t indulge in empty flattery; I’m not in awe of him. For instance, I wouldn’t praise his acting in Paa. I would praise him for his courage in doing a role like Paa, for sitting for hours to get his make-up done, for carrying off such a role. But it didn’t require a great actor; it required a great personality which he could impart to the role. On the other hand, I thought he was superb in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Black.
(Inputs from Anything But Khamosh: The Shatrughan Sinha Biography)
(All photos via File Photo)
