DVD review: The Big B Unleashed - For a lifetime 
By Joginder Tuteja, December 20, 2007 - 12:01 IST
THE DVD
As a viewer, if you get an opportunity to watch as many as 51 Amitabh Bachchan scenes and 26 of his songs, would you have any reasons to
complain? Especially so, when the collection promises to be a Collector's Edition? Definitely not! At the face level, an offer like this is irresistible.
Especially, since this 3 DVD set takes you through a journey which traverses from lesser known films like Alaap, Raaste Ka Patthar and Ek
Nazar to Bachchan's current lot of films like Baghban and Family. And when there are all time favorite scenes from Chupke
Chupke, Amar Akbar Anthony, Satte Pe Satta, Anand, Mili and over a dozen more films; it is hard not to catch hold of the DVD box before it
disappears from the stands.
Any shortcomings? A few minor ones. Though majority of scenes are electrifying and take you through the varied range that Big B has been
demonstrating when it comes to action, comedy, romance, drama and emotions, a few of them (6-8) don't quite seem worthy enough to be a part of
the deal.
PACKAGING
The Big B Unleashed comes with an attractive packaging, which resembles that of a personal diary. The package also includes a one-page write up on
the country's living legend with flattering quotes by Ramesh Sippy, Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Ram Gopal Varma, Rituparno Ghosh and Tinnu Anand
describing the iconic status that he has earned over the years. Gautam Rajadhyaksha's cover photograph of Bachchan in close-up, as has been the
lens man’s USP, boasts of a classy look and feel.
DURATION
The Big B Unleashed comes in a 3 DVD pack. While DVD 1 and DVD 2 comprising of 26 scenes each last for 102 minutes each, the third DVD includes
26 songs featuring Bachchan and comes with 118 minutes duration. In total, a viewer gets to enjoy over 5 hours of non-stop Bachchan
entertainment.
FEATURES - Electrifying Scenes and Superhit Songs
Amar Akbar Anthony, Satte Pe Satta, Chupke Chupke, Majoboor, Anand, Mili, Benaam, Family, Baghban, The Great Gambler, Ganga Ki Saugandh,
Raaste Ka Pathar, Manzil, Bemisaal, Hum Kisi Se Kum Nahin, Kyun Ho Gaya Naa, Jurmana, Ek Nazar, Alaap and Zameer are the films from
which scenes and songs have been hand picked to make for a collectors edition.
For a viewer, 51 scenes featuring Big B is good enough a reason to celebrate. Nevertheless, the clincher comes in the form of trivia which comes after
every scene. This trivia, appearing as a slide, is either related to the scene/movie or may even be Bachchan's achievements/incidents in his real life.
Did you know that
- Manmohan Desai's source of inspiration for the character of Anthony Gonsalves was a violinist in Laxmikant-Pyarelal band and a Khetwadi
localite
- RD Burman had contributed to Indianised version of 'Seven Brides for Seven Brothers' - 'Satte Pe Satta'
- Hrishikesh Mukherjee had Raj Kapoor in mind for the title role of 'Anand'
- Inspiration for Sharman Joshi's character in 'Life In A..Metro' came from Big B's role in 'Raaste Ka Pathar'. Prem Chopra enacted the character
played by Kay Kay Menon.
Many more trivia like this makes one look forward to what's in store once a scene ends!
Some of the best scenes in the film are from the film Chupke Chupke. A film that continues to entertain generations after generations even
after dozen odd viewings, the scenes there are a delight to watch. You literally feel that you have watched an entire Amar Akbar Anthony due to
number of major scenes from the film included as a part of the package. Baghban scenes are still fresh in memory and they are good enough to
give you moist eyes, especially the ones featuring Big B-Hema and the tremendous climax speech.
The DVD is not without it's share of ham scenes though. Big B himself is a party to one of them - Ganga Ki Saugandh. As a village bumpkin, it
is hard to believe that it's the man himself in such a role and attire. But the cake is taken by the scene from the film Majboor when a doctor
breaks the news of a life threatening brain tumor. Even though Bachchan acts with full earnest, the character artist who plays the doctor breaks the
news to him after going through close to dozen odd circles. The way the scene unfolds and the news is broken, a patient may die of heart attack
instead of brain tumor! Though the scene is classified as drama, it could go down as an unintentional comedy sequence!
Sequences, which come as a welcome surprise, are the ones from Raj Kumar Santoshi's Family. An underrated film which lost out at the box
office mainly due to pre-mature death of Akshay Kumar's character in the film, it has some power packed scenes featuring Big B as an international
mafia Don. Watch out for the chill he creates in the meeting of Dons or the sheer shock he gets when he comes to know that his own son is after his
life or the monologue that follows or the ego burst in the climax - Priceless! Inclusion of these few scenes themselves should result in a greater
demand of Family at the DVD shelves!
TECHNICAL DETAILS
- Subtitles In English
- 5.1 Dolby Digital
CONCLUSION
In the bigger scheme of things, around 40 out of 50 scenes working for a viewer are a good enough reason to go for the DVD, especially so when one
takes into consideration that except for a handful of actors, not many have enough 20 scenes in their entire career to boast of! With inclusion of two
dozen songs comprising of 'Dilbar Mere' [Satte Pe Satta], 'Aadmi Jo Kehta Hai' [Majboor], 'Badi Sooni Sooni Hai'
[Mili], 'Ek Roz Main Tadap Kar', 'Khafa Hoon Khafa Hoon' [Bemisal], 'My Name Is Anthony Gonsalves', 'Anhoni Ko Honi
Karde' [Amar Akbar Anthony] and many more, The Big B Unleashed is indeed a Collectors Edition that you would want to own.
Rating: ***1/2
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Amitabh Bachchan to be felicitated at the ITA
