Editing Amitabh Bachchan (section)

=== Rise to prominence (1973–1974) ===
Bachchan was struggling, seen as a "failed newcomer" who, by the age of 30, had only two successes (as a lead in ''Bombay to Goa'' and a supporting role in ''Anand'').<ref>{{cite news |title=Rajesh Khanna didn't charge a penny for Anand; earned 10 times his remuneration through distribution: Historian Dilip Thakur |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/bollywood/rajesh-khanna-didnt-charge-a-penny-for-anand-earned-10-times-his-remuneration-through-distribution-9544282/ |work=The Indian Express |date=1 September 2024 |access-date=21 December 2024}}</ref> Bachchan was then discovered by screenwriter duo [[Salim–Javed]], consisting of [[Salim Khan]] and [[Javed Akhtar]].<ref name="indianexpress2">{{cite news |title=Revisiting Prakash Mehra's Zanjeer: The film that made Amitabh Bachchan |url=http://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/bollywood/revisiting-prakash-mehra-zanjeer-the-film-that-made-amitabh-bachchan-4714064/ |work=[[The Indian Express]] |date=20 June 2017 |access-date=24 November 2017 |archive-date=1 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171201033352/http://indianexpress.com/article/entertainment/bollywood/revisiting-prakash-mehra-zanjeer-the-film-that-made-amitabh-bachchan-4714064/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Salim Khan wrote the story, screenplay and script of ''[[Zanjeer (1973 film)|Zanjeer]]'' (1973), and conceived the "angry young man" persona of the lead role. Javed Akhtar came on board as co-writer,<ref name="timesofindia">{{cite news |title=Why Salim Khan was angry with Amitabh Bachchan |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/hindi/bollywood/news/Why-Salim-Khan-was-angry-with-Amitabh-Bachchan/articleshow/27245793.cms |work=[[The Times of India]] |date=13 December 2013 |access-date=27 November 2017 |archive-date=2 January 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180102180945/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/hindi/bollywood/news/Why-Salim-Khan-was-angry-with-Amitabh-Bachchan/articleshow/27245793.cms |url-status=live }}</ref> and [[Prakash Mehra]], who saw the script as potentially groundbreaking, as the film's director. However, they were struggling to find an actor for the lead "angry young man" role; it was turned down by several actors, owing to it going against the "romantic hero" image dominant in the industry at the time.<ref name="indianexpress2" /> Salim-Javed "saw his talent, which most makers didn't. He was exceptional, a genius actor who was in films that weren't good."<ref name="hindustantimes">{{cite news |title=Deewaar was the perfect script: Amitabh Bachchan on 42 years of the cult film |url=http://www.hindustantimes.com/bollywood/deewaar-was-the-perfect-script-amitabh-bachchan-on-42-years-of-the-cult-film/story-x2hy87zQ0ebVlsVMV59U2I.html |work=[[Hindustan Times]] |date=29 January 2017 |access-date=24 November 2017 |archive-date=1 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171201030549/http://www.hindustantimes.com/bollywood/deewaar-was-the-perfect-script-amitabh-bachchan-on-42-years-of-the-cult-film/story-x2hy87zQ0ebVlsVMV59U2I.html |url-status=live }}</ref> According to Salim Khan, they "strongly felt that Amitabh was the ideal casting for ''Zanjeer''".<ref name="indianexpress2" /> Salim Khan introduced Bachchan to Prakash Mehra,<ref name="timesofindia" /> and Salim-Javed insisted that Bachchan be cast for the role.<ref name="indianexpress2" />

''Zanjeer'' was a [[crime film]] with violent action,<ref name="indianexpress2" /> in sharp contrast to the [[Romance film|romantically themed films]] that had generally preceded it, and it established Amitabh in a new persona—the "angry young man" of [[Bollywood]].<ref name=angryyoungman>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/1945451.stm |title=Film legend promotes Bollywood |publisher=BBC News |date=23 April 2002 |access-date=15 January 2010 |archive-date=24 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120324060409/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/1945451.stm |url-status=live}}</ref> He earned his first [[Filmfare Award]] nomination for [[Filmfare Award for Best Actor|Best Actor]], with ''[[Filmfare]]'' later considering this one of the most iconic performances in Bollywood history.<ref name=iconic1 /> The film was a blockbuster and one of the [[List of Hindi films of 1973|highest-grossing films of that year]], breaking Bachchan's dry spell at the box office and making him a star.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/features/zanjeer50-film-that-ushered-in-the-angry-young-man-532575/|title='Zanjeer'@50: Film that ushered in the angry young man|date=6 August 2023}}</ref><ref name="Top Actors">{{cite web |title=Top Actors |url=http://www.boxofficeindia.com/cpages.php?pageName=top_actors |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080219165002/http://www.boxofficeindia.com/cpages.php?pageName=top_actors |archive-date=19 February 2008 |access-date=24 April 2020 |work=Box Office India}}</ref> It was the first of many collaborations between Salim-Javed and Amitabh; the duo wrote many of their subsequent scripts with Bachchan in mind for the lead role, and insisted on him being cast for their later films.<ref name="hindustantimes" /> Salim Khan also introduced Bachchan to director [[Manmohan Desai]] with whom he formed a long and successful association, alongside Prakash Mehra and [[Yash Chopra]].<ref name="timesofindia" />

Eventually, Bachchan became one of the most successful leading men of the film industry. His portrayal of the wronged hero fighting a crooked system and circumstances of deprivation in films like ''Zanjeer'', ''Deewaar'', [[Trishul (film)|''Trishul'']], ''[[Kaala Patthar]]'' and ''[[Shakti (1982 film)|Shakti]]'' resonated with the masses of the time, especially the youth who harboured a simmering discontent owing to social ills such as poverty, [[hunger]], unemployment, corruption, [[social inequality]] and the brutal excesses of [[The Emergency (India)|The Emergency]]. This led to Bachchan being dubbed as the "angry young man", a journalistic catchphrase that became a metaphor for the dormant rage, frustration, restlessness, sense of [[rebellion]] and [[anti-establishment]] disposition of an entire generation, prevalent in the 1970s.<ref>{{cite journal |url=https://www.academia.edu/10614647 |title=The 'Angry Young Man' of 'Zanjeer': From Osborne to Bachchan |first=Maanvi |last=Narcisa |website=Academia |access-date=21 July 2018 |archive-date=4 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230404051610/https://www.academia.edu/10614647 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-19893525 |title=Why Amitabh Bachchan is more than a superstar |date=11 October 2012 |access-date=21 July 2018 |publisher=BBC |archive-date=25 September 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180925035704/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-19893525 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/281116060 |title=Writing the Angry Young Man: Salim-Javed's screenplays for Amitabh Bachchan |first=Claus |last=Tieber |date=21 August 2015 |access-date=21 July 2018 |via=ResearchGate |archive-date=11 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201011115044/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/281116060_Writing_the_Angry_Young_Man_Salim-Javed%27s_screenplays_for_Amitabh_Bachchan |url-status=live }}</ref>

The year 1973 was also when he married Jaya, and around this time they appeared in several films together: not only ''Zanjeer'' but also subsequent films such as ''[[Abhimaan (1973 film)|Abhimaan]]'', which was released around the same time after their wedding and was also successful at the box office.<ref>{{cite news|access-date=24 March 2023|title=Abhimaan: A Bollywood marital drama that's relevant even after 50 years|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-64813501|newspaper=BBC News|date=16 March 2023}}</ref> Later, he played the role of Vikram, once again along with [[Rajesh Khanna]], in the film ''[[Namak Haraam]]'', a social drama directed by [[Hrishikesh Mukherjee]] and addressing themes of friendship.<ref name="The common man's film maker">{{Cite web |title=The common man's film maker |url=https://www.newindianexpress.com/entertainment/tamil/2013/aug/27/the-common-mans-film-maker-510849.html |access-date=16 January 2021 |website=The New Indian Express |date=27 August 2013 |archive-date=2 March 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200302043833/https://www.newindianexpress.com/entertainment/tamil/2013/aug/27/The-common-mans-film-maker-510849.html |url-status=live}}</ref> The film proved to be a superhit and Bachchan won his second [[Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor]] for his performance.<ref name="The common man's film maker"/><ref>{{cite news |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/movie-awards/filmfare-awards-winners/bollywood/1974/101 |title=Filmfare Awards Winners 1974: Complete list of winners of Filmfare Awards 1974 |website=The Times of India |access-date=2 April 2020 |archive-date=11 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201011115045/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/movie-awards/filmfare-awards-winners/bollywood/1974/101 |url-status=live}}</ref> The flow of successes continued for Bachchan in 1974.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.indiatvnews.com/entertainment/celebrities/manoj-kumar-recalls-special-memories-of-life-with-amitabh-bachchan-in-roti-kapda-aur-makaan-715676|title=Manoj Kumar recalls 'special memories of life' with Amitabh Bachchan in 'Roti, Kapda Aur Makaan'|date=30 June 2021}}</ref> He began the year with a guest appearance in [[Dulal Guha]]'s blockbuster social drama film ''[[Dost (1974 film)|Dost]]''.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Rewind – Greatest Indian Film Sholay Is 43 Years Old |url=https://www.boxofficeindia.com/report-details.php?articleid=4183|publisher=Box Office India}}</ref> After this, he starred in Aravind Sen's drama film ''[[Kasauti]]'' and [[Narendra Bedi]]'s [[Crime film|crime thriller]] ''[[Benaam (1974 film)|Benaam]]'', both of which ended up as moderate commercial successes. Bachchan's next release was [[Manoj Kumar]]'s fourth directional venture ''[[Roti Kapada Aur Makaan]]''.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jcLihj0Yzi0C&pg=PA12 |title=India of My Dreams |isbn=9788171886890 |access-date=25 January 2022 |last1=Kumar |first1=Surendra |last2=Kapur |first2=Pradeep Kumar |year=2008|publisher=Academic Foundation}}</ref> The film opened to excellent response all over the country, eventually taking top spot at the box office that year and emerging an ''All Time Blockbuster'' as well as Bachchan's biggest up to that point of time.<ref name="SK"/> Before the end of year, he delivered a hit in [[Ravi Tandon]]'s crime thriller ''[[Majboor (1974 film)|Majboor]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/majboor|title=Majboor (1974)|website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]]}}</ref> Written by Salim-Javed, it also had [[Pran (actor)|Pran]] and [[Parveen Babi]] in the lead.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thehindu.com/features/cinema/majboor-1974/article5071757.ece|title=Majboor (1974)|newspaper=The Hindu |date=29 August 2013 }}</ref>