Amitabh Bachchan could not hide his emotions during the Friday edition of his quiz show Kaun Banega Crorepati as he welcomed a real hero as his special Karmveer contestant. While speaking to Navin Gulia from Haryana, the KBC host drew a parallel with Navin’s fight with adversity in life with what the Bollywood megastar himself went through in the 80s while shooting for Coolie.
Bachchan said that there was a similarity between the tragedy in the Navin’s life and what the superstar had to once go through following a life-threatening accident during the shooting of film Coolie in 1982.
Pouring his heart out, Bachchan recalled, “When I was in the ICU, it would take me the whole night to walk a small distance. I would try and walk after the nurses were asleep. It would take me half an hour to cover a distance of just one inch. But I was determined telling myself that I have to reach that point tonight.”
Bachchan added that once he was out of the hospital, he expressed his desire to resume his film shooting. But, according to him, his family members advised him against that idea citing his weak condition. His brother told him to prove his fitness to show that he was capable of resuming his film shooting.
“My brother asked me to show him what activities was I capable of doing. First, he asked me to walk. I walked. He asked me to prove that I could run. I ran. He then asked me to dance since shooting a film also entailed dancing,” Bachchan continued.
Bachchan said that he would go near a tree and practice his kicking strength to show his brother that he was capable of filming fight sequences too. “I would go near the tree when everyone was asleep in my family. I would practice kicking and mark the point on the tree where my leg would reach. The next day I would mark a new point since I was able to raise it further. I did all these things to prove that I was capable of working in films again,” Bachchan said.
Bachchan narrated this story to reassure Navin that he understood his fight in life. Navin, an army officer, had suffered a near-fatal accident during a military training damaging his spine. The accident left him paralysed. But far from giving up on life, he decided to use the opportunity to bring about positive changes in the lives of underprivileged girls in Haryana.
Bachchan too had suffered a life-threatening injury in his stomach in 1982 while shooting a fight sequence for Coolie. It was on 2 August 1982 when he regained consciousness. His fans celebrate the date as his second birthday till today.
This year on 2 August, Bachchan had taken to Twitter to write, “Many are they that remember this day with love and respect and with prayer .. I can only say I am blessed to have such gracious thoughts with me .. it is this love that carries me on each day .. it is a debt that I shall never be able to repay.”
You can watch the special episode here.