Abstract

Till pre-1974 the Hindi film audience in India was subjected to an unending stream of romantic tale depicted in the movies of that era. Somehow the viewing public seems to have got disenchanted at this seemingly unrelenting assault on their senses. Then came Zanjeer and the rest is history. The decade i.e 1970-1980 was a decade of disgruntlement. Discontentment ruled the roost all through this period. The Indian gentry cutting across the age barrier seems to have been drowned in the deluge of the corrupted polity. An aura of negativity percolated down the line. The government of the day seems to have little or no answer to the issues afflicting the society.

The man on the street started relating himself to the Bachchan persona as he (Amitabh Bachchan) exemplified the exact nature of the problems faced by the common man. The people identified themselves with the figure of the Angry Young Man and there evolved a common bonding between the Man on the screen and the Man on the street. The issues of the working class have been deftly portrayed in this genre of movies.

The paper seeks to highlight the intricacies of Indian masses and the way out for redemption. The latter seem to have been made possible through the action of the principle male protagonist of the Hindi cinema of the day -Amitabh Bachan. Almost all his starrers like Deewar, Kala Patthar, Trishul etc. portrayed the physical, moral as well as psychological trauma of the Indian people especially the middle and the lower class. Thus, the ordinary man started sensing that he was also capable of leading a dignified life after passing through this maze of adversities.