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Rajesh Khanna who is known as the ‘First Superstar’ of Bollywood, has delivered a string of consecutive superhit films, earning a massive fan following. However, his career took a downturn with the rise of Amitabh Bachchan and the consistent box-office failures of his films.
In a conversation with a Movie magazine in 1990, Khanna reflected on his initial encounter with fame, acknowledging that it had a profound impact on him.He recalled a particularly troubling moment that left his wife, Dimple Kapadia, concerned about his sanity.
The veteran star noted that the first time he truly grasped how overwhelming super-success could be was after the release of ‘Andaaz’, during a lottery draw held at the Vidhan Sabha in Bangalore. He admitted that such success can completely psyche you out, unless you’re not human.
Khanna went on to describe the overwhelming experience, saying that all he could see were countless heads bobbing along a road that stretched nearly ten miles. The crowd’s unified echo, like a roar from a Roman stadium, was so powerful that it moved him to tears, and he wept like a baby.
Khanna expressed his surprise that success and failure didn’t seem to affect Amitabh as deeply as they did him. He admitted that when his career began to decline, he turned to alcohol, saying he wasn’t superhuman and couldn’t handle the failures easily. He recalled a moment when, after seven consecutive flops, he was high on spirits at three in the morning. Overwhelmed by his first taste of failure, he found himself on his terrace in the pouring rain, where he lost control and yelled out to the heavens, pleading not to be tested so harshly that he would begin to doubt the very existence of God.
Khanna admitted that he struggled to handle the failure because his success had impacted him so profoundly. He added that both Dimple and his staff rushed to his side, concerned that he had lost his sanity.
In a conversation with a Movie magazine in 1990, Khanna reflected on his initial encounter with fame, acknowledging that it had a profound impact on him.He recalled a particularly troubling moment that left his wife, Dimple Kapadia, concerned about his sanity.
The veteran star noted that the first time he truly grasped how overwhelming super-success could be was after the release of ‘Andaaz’, during a lottery draw held at the Vidhan Sabha in Bangalore. He admitted that such success can completely psyche you out, unless you’re not human.
Khanna went on to describe the overwhelming experience, saying that all he could see were countless heads bobbing along a road that stretched nearly ten miles. The crowd’s unified echo, like a roar from a Roman stadium, was so powerful that it moved him to tears, and he wept like a baby.
Khanna expressed his surprise that success and failure didn’t seem to affect Amitabh as deeply as they did him. He admitted that when his career began to decline, he turned to alcohol, saying he wasn’t superhuman and couldn’t handle the failures easily. He recalled a moment when, after seven consecutive flops, he was high on spirits at three in the morning. Overwhelmed by his first taste of failure, he found himself on his terrace in the pouring rain, where he lost control and yelled out to the heavens, pleading not to be tested so harshly that he would begin to doubt the very existence of God.
Khanna admitted that he struggled to handle the failure because his success had impacted him so profoundly. He added that both Dimple and his staff rushed to his side, concerned that he had lost his sanity.
