Megastar Amitabh Bachchan has opened up about the rejection and ridicule he endured during his early years in the Hindi film industry, recalling being told he was too tall to act and being thrown off a film set for arriving late. The revelations came during a special episode in which Bachchan sat down with Commonwealth Games 2026 gold medallists Lovlina Borgohain, Jhandu Kumar, Sharmila Dhankar, and Asmita Dey, celebrating India's sporting achievements.

Height-Shaming and Harsh Words from Directors

When athlete Asmita Dey asked whether film directors scold actors the way coaches scold athletes, Bachchan laughed and launched into candid memories of his most difficult years. He recalled being told bluntly that he lacked any acting ability and that his height made him unfit for the screen.

'Humko badi daant padti hain, shuru-shuru mein toh bahut padi thi. Tumko kuch aata nahi hai, acting-wacting, tum bahut lambe ho, jaake ghar jaao,' he said — translating to: 'I used to get scolded a lot. In the beginning, I was scolded immensely. They would tell me, You don't know anything about acting, you are too tall, go back home.'

Even after securing work, the criticism persisted. Directors would correct his dialogue delivery on set, pushing him to refine his craft through repeated reprimands. 'Aise daant deke, aise bhale karo, dheere-dheere phir usko...' he recalled — meaning the constant scolding and correction slowly shaped him into the performer he became.

The Day He Was Thrown Off a Set

Bachchan also recounted a particularly humbling incident when he arrived late to a shoot. At the time, he did not own a car and had borrowed one from someone else. By the time he reached the location, the director had already called a wrap. Standing outside the set, the director saw him and said, 'Get out from here,' dismissing him on the spot. The episode underscores how little margin for error existed for struggling newcomers in Bollywood during that era.

A Career That Defied Every Early Rejection

The rejections Bachchan faced were not limited to film sets. Around the same time he was trying to break into acting, he auditioned for a newsreader's position at All India Radio (AIR) — and was turned down, with his now-iconic baritone reportedly deemed unsuitable for broadcast. His first brush with cinema came not as an actor but as a voice-over artist, lending his distinctive voice to Mrinal Sen's 'Bhuvan Shome' in 1969 — a low-budget film that became a landmark of India's parallel cinema movement.

His acting debut followed the same year with 'Saath Hindustani', which failed to find an audience. The breakthrough came with 'Zanjeer', which established him as the 'angry young man' of Hindi cinema and launched one of the most celebrated careers in Indian film history.

Five Decades and Counting

Over more than five decades, Bachchan has worked across genres and generations. Films such as Deewaar, Sholay, Don, Muqaddar Ka Sikandar, Trishul, Kaala Patthar, and Agneepath defined his early peak. Later works including Mohabbatein, Black, Paa, Piku, Pink, 102 Not Out, and Jhund cemented his standing as one of Indian cinema's most versatile performers. The conversation with the Commonwealth Games medallists — themselves no strangers to adversity — offered a rare window into the struggles behind the legend.