Amitabh Bachchan Opens Up About His Bond With The Love Of His Life, Jaya Bachchan In A Throwback Interview

Marriage isn’t about finding the perfect person, it is about finding the perfect person for you. For Amitabh Bachchan, it wasn’t love at first sight, but for Jaya, it was. She first spotted him while studying at Pune Film Institute and then went on to co-star with him in the films, Guddi and Ek Nazar. The pair fell in love on the sets of Ek Nazar in 1972 and were married by June of the next year. Clearly the pair were destined to keep crossing paths. So let’s take a look at their inspiring love story:

Meant To Be

Amitabh and Jaya were clearly meant to be. The pair have been married for nearly fifty years now and share two kids and three grandchildren together. They’ve starred in more than 4 films together and have shared incredible chemistry in the films, Abhimaan and Zanjeer. When Jaya first met Amitabh, she was impressed by his charismatic personality and developed an instant crush on him. At the time, Amitabh was still a struggling actor and Jaya had already had her first taste of success with two Bengali films and a 13-minute short film. Before she had even graduated from college, Jaya had already been introduced into the film industry.

Jaya then had appeared on the glossy cover of a magazine, which had caught the interest of Amitabh. For Amitabh, she was the perfect combination of traditional and modern, something he sought out for in a partner. The pair were then brought together for the first time for their film Guddi and Amitabh was delighted to be working beside her. Jaya once said, “I was impressed by him and somewhat in awe as he was Harivanshrai Bachchan’s son. I felt he was different, though people laughed at me when I said that. I expressed my feelings and said he’s going to make it big, even though I was aware he wasn’t the usual stereotype hero. I fell in love with him very soon.”

A Sometimes Turbulent Courtship

Pretty soon, Amitabh and Jaya were smitten with one another and would often visit each other on the sets of their films. Rajesh Khanna, who was a close friend of Jaya’s allegedly warned her about Amitabh’s ways and told her it wasn’t a good idea for her to date him. The people who had worked on the sets of the film Zanjeer made Amitabh and Jaya promise to accompany them on a trip to London if the movie was a success, which it was.

It was in this case that Amitabh Bachchan’s parents rejected the idea of the two of them traveling together if they weren’t married. So Amitabh made the bold decision to propose to Jaya and in 1973, they tied the knot in a quiet wedding ceremony with close friends and family. Eventually, Jaya took a backseat as an actress to focus on raising her two kids, Shweta and Abhishek Bachchan. Amitabh had once said, “Every marriage is a challenge, and mine wasn’t different. One thing I find very admirable about Jaya is that she chose to give preference to home, not films. There was no obstacle from me ever, it was her decision.”

Marital Bliss

The couple were also plagued with a lot of infidelity rumors in the early days of their marriage. Amitabh had allegedly been linked with his Do Anjaane co-star, Rekha as well as Hare Rama Hare Krishna actress, Zeenat Aman. However, Jaya chose to maintain a poised stance and denied all the rumors. She spoke about how she has faith in her husband and that she knew that people in the industry loved to spread rumors about infidelity and scandals. A few years ago, when the pair were celebrating their 42nd anniversary, Amitabh had shared a lovely note on Instagram. He spoke about how magical his wedding day felt and that he remembered all the details of it very well too. He spoke about how it was a traditional Bengali ceremony and that it had rained earlier that day. The pair even managed to fulfill their wishes of visiting London together as they honeymooned in the UK.

Jaya has always been Amitabh’s pillar of support during his roughest of moments. She has stuck by his side through his low moments as well as his meteoric rise to success as he grew older. Amitabh had spoken that he still feels the same way about Jaya as when he had first met her. He spoke about how he loves that she makes him feel wonderful. He had commended Jaya for being a more rational and straight-laced person than he was and spoke about how she is sometimes embarrassingly blunt about her feelings. He said that he admired that quality of hers and the fact that she respected his sense of individuality and independence.

Amitabh had added that although they had spent more than 41 years together, their love for each other hadn’t changed as the kids and grandkids came along. He had revealed how quickly the pair had wrapped up their nuptials and how they so badly wanted to travel to London with one another. However, respecting their parents’ wishes was their utmost priority and the couple wed before traveling together again. Despite their ups and downs, Amitabh and Jaya have proven to be an evergreen couple. Do let us know which film they co-starred in together is your favorite in the comment section below.

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Niharika NayakBA (Media & Communication)

 

Niharika has a passion for all things art, music, and travel and has over 4 years of experience in writing for social media. During her spare time, she likes experimenting in the kitchen, playing video games, and hanging out with stray animals.

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