Nepotism has been a burning issue in Bollywood for quite some time now, and the public mood against it further got galvanised with the untimely demise of Sushant Singh Rajput, by suicide no less. His death opened up a can of worms, which Bollywood would rather keep hidden. Whether it be mocking a self-made artist, or denying big and deserving projects to them, Mumbai’s film industry has witnessed it all. Nepotism has no place in today’s day and age. However, like every coin, there is another side to nepotism, the side which the career of Abhishek Bachchan explains the best.
There is no discounting the fact that nepotism in the industry has inhibited the growth of innumerable talented individuals – who dreamt of making a name for themselves. Nepotism has filled in the industry star kinds with no skill sets, but only a filmy lineage, and to call such kids ‘actors’ would truly be a disservice to the art. Having said that, it becomes important to mention that due to the same nepotism, brilliant actors, who unfortunately have been victims of bad scripts from the very beginning, are today being targeted for not knowing how to ‘act’.
Nepotism sometimes backfires. Rohan Gavaskar was expected to bat just like his father, Arjun Tendulkar will face the same pressure, if he plays international cricket.
But there is one guy who has been a major victim of nepotism going wrong. And that’s Abhishek Bachchan.
1/n
— Atul Kumar Mishra (@TheAtulMishra) July 15, 2020
Like the child of any other legend, Abhishek Bachchan, for reasons best known to the public, is judged keeping Amitabh Bachchan in mind, and since he at times falls short of his father, the man is automatically sentenced as a pariah to acting. With “Breathe into the Shadows” getting released on July 10, people with no sense of purpose in life are back – hitting out mercilessly at Abhishek Bachchan for his acting in the web series. Bachchan has been unnecessarily trolled, due to the predisposition of almost everyone that the man has failed as an actor. While many, owing to this mindset, do not even watch his films, those who do, end up comparing him with Big B, which is completely unfair, to say the least.
Abhishek Bachchan’s debut film was J.P Dutta’s ‘Refugee’, in the year 2000. Ever since, his career has been one of multiple ups and downs, primarily due to the lack of good scripts, and also majorly due to the high range of expectations of the audience from “Amitabh Bachchan’s son.” Having done a series of films which failed to tease the senses of the audiences, Abhishek Bachchan’s skills, perhaps for the first time, lay bare for all to see in ‘Yuva’. Bachchan’s immense acting in ‘Sarkaar’ too will not be given a miss by appreciators of films and the art which goes behind them. In ‘Sarkaar’, many are of the opinion that the son outclassed the father, and put to bed myths of him knowing nothing about acting. Abhishek Bachchan is a brilliant method actor who in ‘Pa’, ‘Guru’, ‘Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna’, among others, shattered pre-held notions of him not being talented.
Abhishek Bachchan is not necessarily needed to work. He has all that one could ask for. His survival is not premised upon his ability to work. Son of Amitabh and Jaya Bachchan, both actors par excellence, and also husband to Aishwarya Rai, Abhishek could just be chilling in life. Yet, he works hard as an actor. Moreover, why, despite having such a family and background, did he not blow as a superstar in the industry? Due to the high standards which audiences set for him, unfairly so. Of course, Abhishek Bachchan chose some below-mediocre films to act in initially, however, that does not take away from the fact that the man has the potential to truly live a character he plays, which he has done multiple times.
Indian audiences must realise that Abhishek Bachchan is not a carbon copy of his father, and that acting does not trickle down from one generation to the other. Abhishek’s work needs to be judged objectively, and not by holding a predisposed mindset of the kind of an actor he is.