@Om_Books
Publisher
Manalika Das
@Manalika · 1:23
In conversation with S.M.M. Ausaja; author of "The Bachchans: A Saga of Excellence".
It is a stunning visual chronicle of their history, spanning over 100 years, documenting the life and times of Hariwan Shari Bachchan, Teji Bachchan and the remarkable film careers of Amitabh Bachchan, his wife Jaya Bhaduri and their son Abhishek Bachchan and also their daughter in law, Ashwarya Rai. In the Bachchans, Mr
Manalika Das
@Manalika · 0:30
Hello, everyone. So now I welcome Mr. Sm? M? Osaja, author of the Bachchans a saga of excellence in the Bachchans. Mr. Osaja offers the ultimate scholarly tribute to the family with a dazzling kaleidoscope of never before seen images, posters, stills and photographs that are bound to thrill and mesmerize anybody interested in the story of the remarkable Bachchan family. So welcome, sir. I hope you are doing well. And I am indeed very excited to have a conversation with
S M M Ausaja
@SMM_Ausaja-110 · 0:04
Manalika Das
@Manalika · 0:21
Alright, sir. So my first question for you would be related to your personal life. So we all know that wherever we live it has an impact on our personality and our life. So Mumbai is often considered as the heart of Bollywood, right? So how was living in this city influenced your perspective on the film industry and its history as a whole?
S M M Ausaja
@SMM_Ausaja-110 · 0:28
Mumbai is my karma, bhoomi. And I'm really grateful to this city for giving me whatever it has given me. And of course, because I was always interested in cinema, this city opened new vistas for me in terms of an archivist and a collector. So I got a lot of material over the years which I've been collecting
Manalika Das
@Manalika · 0:25
Yes, sir, indeed. Plus, the place is known as the heart of Bollywood. So I'm pretty sure you must have received a lot of inspiration and a lot of information while exploring this particular city. So, sir, my next question for you is related to your book. So what inspired you to delve into the cultural legacy of the Bachchan family, spanning over 100 years and create a visual chronicle in the Bachchan's a saga of excellence?
S M M Ausaja
@SMM_Ausaja-110 · 2:02
I approached Ombooks International and they were very kind to give it a positive feedback. And that's how the project started. Of course, it took a lot of time, almost more than twelve years. But the journey has been worth it because it is essentially a career chronicle of five glorious careers within a family. Therefore, of course, it took time because the book is a coffee table book. It's a visual book
Manalika Das
@Manalika · 0:36
I mean, obviously, evidently. So. Your book covers multiple generations of the Bachchan family. Right? So can you discuss the research process and any unique discoveries that you made while exploring their history?
S M M Ausaja
@SMM_Ausaja-110 · 4:00
You. The research process was difficult because there was a lot of material, especially of the. When his father grew up and became famous as a poet, and the journey thereafter that was very difficult to find. Of course, the basis of my book to cover that period is Dr. Bachchan's brilliant four part biography, autobiography that he has written. So that has a lot of authentic information
Manalika Das
@Manalika · 1:24
But when you write about other people's opinions, their views regarding Bachchan sir's movies, or their family life, or whatever other information, you kind of provide a particular insight about the mindset of the audience. How did they understand the film? How did they take the film? Was there a negative response? Was there a positive response? So I think the amalgamation of both positive and critical aspects is something which makes this book very dynamic and very reasonable for the audience out there
S M M Ausaja
@SMM_Ausaja-110 · 2:52
So that became a style statement of then, of course, the knotted shirt of Diwar that is there in the book. And when you move to Diwar, there's an iconic full page knotted, shared artwork. So I have made sure that if you come to Ashwarai, I have made sure the highlight is her winning the Miss world title and then moving on to her first film. And all the famous films and highlights of those films are there. Same goes with Abhishek
Manalika Das
@Manalika · 0:34
So sir, with this I can conclude that this book is not just a normal biography of the Bachchan family. Rather, it's an inspirational artwork. And I think everyone who is even a slight bit of interested in the life of Mr. Amitabh Bachchan or his family, they would definitely love this book. So, sir, coming back to your personal life once again in your journey as a film historian and author
S M M Ausaja
@SMM_Ausaja-110 · 2:54
He told me that I should expand my vistas beyond Bachchan and acquire a lot of important films of their times across decades, which I started doing. Therefore, now I'm sitting on a massive cinema memorabilia archive which is covering almost 100 plus years of hindi cinema. So therefore, after Bachchan's, I am definitely, as Mr. Bachchan also suggested when he released the book, that I should be doing more books on more personalities in the film industry
Manalika Das
@Manalika · 0:52
It had something very powerful which is not available right now. And we don't know whether it's going to be present in the future as well. So only time will decide what will happen in the future. So, sir, with this we come towards the end of our interview. Thank you so much for taking out your precious time for this conversation. And I wish you all the best for your future, your endeavors. Thank you once again
S M M Ausaja
@SMM_Ausaja-110 · 0:37
Thank you so much. And I must tell you that the response that I got for this book from the Bachchan family has been extremely good and positive. And the kind of response I'm getting from various film fraternity people, I'm humbled to say that I'm extremely happy, and I feel that I've delivered something that's very meaningful and that's going to help not just film fans, but also scholars of cinema who want to study the success of any of these stars within the Bachchan family