“Tum bahut lambe ho…”: Big B shares struggles of early acting days

Megastar Amitabh Bachchan, in a special episode with Commonwealth Games 2026 gold medallists, recalled the rejection and harsh criticism he faced during his early days in the Hindi film industry, including being told he was “too tall” to act and being asked to leave a film set for arriving late.

Mumbai: Megastar Amitabh Bachchan recalled facing rejection and harsh criticism during his struggling days in the Hindi film industry.

The actor, while in a conversation with Commonwealth Games 2026 gold medallists Lovlina Borgohain, Jhandu Kumar, Sharmila Dhankar and Asmita Dey in a special episode celebrating India’s sporting achievement, revealed the harshness he faced during his initial days.

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The actor recalled being told that he was too tall to become an actor and being asked to leave a film set after he arrived late for a shoot.

During the episode, Asmita asked Bachchan whether, like athletes are often scolded by their coaches for making mistakes during training, do actors also face the ire of directors on film sets.

Big B laughed as he recalled how much he was criticised when he was trying to establish himself in the film industry.

“Humko badi daant padti hain, shuru-shuru mein toh bahut padi thi. ‘Tumko kuch aata nahi hai, acting-wacting, tum bahut lambe ho, jaake ghar jaao.’” (I used to get scolded a lot. In the beginning, I was scolded immensely. They would tell me, ‘You don’t know anything about acting, you are too tall, go back home’)

He then recalled that even after he finally got work, the criticism did not stop.

“Phir jab kaam mil gaya, ‘accha chalo theek hai, udhar khade ho jaao, aur dialogue bolo. Aise koi dialogue bolne ka tareeka hai?’ Aise daant deke, aise bhale karo, dheere-dheere phir usko…”

(Then when I finally got work, they would say, ‘Okay, fine, stand over there and say the dialogue.’ They would ask, ‘Is this any way to deliver a dialogue?’ They would scold and correct me, and slowly, I improved)

Bachchan also shared an incident from his early days when he arrived late for a shoot and was asked to leave the set.

“Aam taur par hum chahte hain ki hum samay se pahunche shooting ke liye. Ek baar der ho gayi. Director jo hai, woh bahar khada hua, set ke. Aur hum gaadi lekar, kisi aur ki gaadi thi, tab hamare paas nahi thi, lekar pahunche toh usne dekha, shooting pack up ho gayi hai. ‘Get out from here,’ aur usne mujhe nikaal diya.”

(Usually, I try to reach the shoot on time. Once, I was late. The director was standing outside the set. I arrived in a car that belonged to someone else because I did not have a car at the time. When I reached, the director saw me and said the shooting had been packed up. He told me, ‘Get out from here,’ and asked me to leave)

For the uninitiated, Amitabh Bachchan who has been a part of the entertainment industry for over five decades, first association with cinema began as a voice-over artist before venturing into acting.

In 1969, he had lent his distinctive baritone to Mrinal Sen’s ‘Bhuvan Shome’, a low-budget film that became a landmark of India’s parallel cinema movement.

Around the same time, Amitabh Bachchan had auditioned for a newsreader’s position at All India Radio (AIR) but was rejected, with his deep voice reportedly considered unsuitable for the job.

He then went on to make his acting debut the same year with ‘Saath Hindustani”, which unfortunately did not click with the audience.

The megastar’s breakthrough came with films such as Zanjeer, which established him as the ‘angry young man’ of Hindi cinema. He subsequently delivered a string of major hits including Deewaar, Sholay, Don, Muqaddar Ka Sikandar, Trishul, Kaala Patthar and Agneepath amongst many others.

Over the decades, Bachchan has worked across genres and generations, with films such as Mohabbatein, Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, Black, Paa, Piku, Pink, 102 Not Out and Jhund adding to his extensive filmography.