Throwback To When Naseeruddin Shah Was Brutally Honest About His Opinion On Rajesh Khanna And Amitabh Bachchan
Back when Naseeruddin Shah got too honest about his opinion on these veteran actors.
Apart from his brilliant acting, Naseeruddin Shah’s unflinching honesty is what makes him in Bollywood. The actor has sparked multiple controversies by openly criticising veteran Bollywood actors like Rajesh Khanna and Amitabh Bachchan. He referred to Khanna as a poor actor and said Bachchan’s cult classic movie was not a good film.
Shah is popular for his unabashed views, even if it is directed at some of the most well-known legends of Hindi cinema. In a time when many actors avoid controversy to maintain amicable relations with their peers. Shah’s honesty is peculiar.
In a 2010 conversation with NewsX, Shah discussed the impact of actors and their legacies. Naseeruddin Shah criticised Amitabh Bachchan’s filmography by saying that the actor has not done a great film yet. When asked about Sholay, one of Bachchan’s most celebrated and widely recognised films, Shah answered that although Sholay is an entertaining film, it’s not a great one.
Even more controversial, perhaps, was Shah’s take on the first superstar of Hindi cinema, Rajesh Khanna. In a 2016 interview with Hindustan Times, Shah did not hold becak when talking about the actor. Shah said Rajesh Khanna was a limited and mediocre actor.
In another conversation during the India Film Project Season 14, Shah addressed the topic of originality in cinema. The actor said he acknowledges the complexity of defining originality by stating that even a great playwright like Shakespeare borrowed elements from other past plays, hence, originality can be based on the presentation of the story.
First Published: May 21, 2025 2:16 PM
