Amitabh Bachchan recalls being called ‘unnt’ when he wanted to star in films in 1969, shares throwback pic atop a camel

Actor Amitabh Bachchan took a trip down memory lane as he shared a throwback picture from his second film Reshma Aur Shera. Taking to Instagram on Monday, Amitabh posted a black and white photo in which he was seen sitting on top of a camel. Dressed in a white kurta, and matching dhoti, Amitabh made a pose as he looked at the camera. He also had a scarf around his neck. (Also Read | When Waheeda Rehman fainted during Reshma Aur Shera bali scene, Amitabh Bachchan ‘felt privileged, took care of her’)

Several people and tents were seen behind him in the picture. Amitabh captioned the post, “When I came to join films in 1969 all of them used to call me unnt! .. so I thought I would justify that and mounted one (laughing emojis). This is from my 2nd film Reshma aur Shera .. location Pochina, miles into the desert beyond Jaisalmer ..Now fortunately they don’t call me that … the titled epithet has been usurped by several others…” Unnt means camel.

Reacting to the post, a fan wrote, “You have reached the sky in terms of name and fame sir. Ab na unnt matters na hi height (Now neither camel matters nor height). Legend, pride and shahenshah of India.” “What a handsome man,” said a person. “Yes, my uncle would use similar phrases to describe you, and I used to fight with him. Those were the days, different generation of hero worship,” commented an Instagram user.

Reshma Aur Shera (1971) is produced and directed by Sunil Dutt. Apart from Amitabh, the film also stars Sunil, Waheeda Rehman, Vinod Khanna, Raakhee, Ranjeet, and Amrish Puri. Reshma Aur Shera was selected as India’s entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 44th Academy Awards but was not accepted as a nominee. The film won three awards at the National Film Awards.

In an interview with Filmfare in 2018, Amitabh had said, “When I got an opportunity to work with Waheeda in Reshma Aur Shera (1971) early in my career, I could not believe my luck. To me, she has always symbolised the ideal Indian woman and in her personal demeanour, I found qualities that were similar to my beliefs. A quiet, modest and reserved individual, she was a picture of grace during the shooting of the film. The unit spent a great deal of time in the deserts of Rajasthan camped in tents at Pochina, a village some distance from Jaisalmer.”

Amitabh was recently seen in the family entertainer film Uunchai along with Anupam Kher, Parineeti Chopra, Boman Irani. The film also starred Danny Denzongpa, Neena Gupta and Sarika. Helmed by Sooraj Barjatya, the film got positive responses from the audience.

Amitabh will be next seen in the remake of The Intern along with Deepika Padukone. He is also a part of Project K alongside Deepika and Prabhas.