Shakti Reigns

When I signed Amitabh Bachchan for Sholay (1975), he was going through a lean phase.

- Suman Sharma

SalimJaved recommended him because they were working with him on Zanjeer (1973). I'd seen two of his films then. First, Anand (1971), where he stood his ground even though the accolades went to Rajesh Khanna. The other was Bombay To Goa (1972), which was shot in a bus. I felt if this tall gentleman could look so graceful in the space of a bus, he has to have a rhythm in him. If in Anand he was serious, here he was light-hearted. And he had carried off both – a serious and a comic role well. Jayaji (Bachchan) and he were a good combination to have. Little did we know that during the making of Sholay, his films Zanjeer (1973) and Deewaar (1975) would release and he’d become a superstar. Later, we went on to do Shaan (1980) and Shakti (1982).