Abhishek Bachchan On Why 'Dhoom' Was A Turning Point In His Career

Exactly 15 years ago, Yash Raj Films kickstarted its biggest franchise – Dhoom. Starring Abhishek Bachchan, John Abraham, Esha Deol, Uday Chopra and Rimi Sen in the lead roles, the film went on to re-introduce mainstream Hindi film audience to a heist movie that was miles ahead of Bollywood’s last sincere attempt at the genre in 1993’s Roop Ki Rani Choron Ka Raja. It featured superbikes, some sleek-looking technology and a bunch of actors thirsty for widespread acceptance. The most nervous among them was probably Abhishek Bachchan, who had delivered consecutive 14 unsuccessful films before Dhoom.

Looking to come out of the gargantuan shadow of his father Amitabh Bachchan, Abhishek was also probably most relieved when the film went on to become a success. And therefore it’s no surprise that Bachchan Jr decided to pen a heartfelt thank you to the cast and crew of his first success in Bollywood, as it completed 15 years yesterday. In an Instagram post, Abhishek Bachchan thanked Aditya Chopra for giving him the opportunity to play ACP Jai Dixit, when most people had turned his back on him.

 

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15 years in a heartbeat! A film that changed it all! Especially for me. Will never be able to thank Adi ( Aditya Chopra) and @sanjaygadhvi4 enough for entrusting Jai Dixit to me. Their faith, belief and support came at a time when I needed it the most in my career. To @thejohnabraham @udayc @imeshadeol Rimi and the rest of the cast. Through the making of the film we made memories to last us a lifetime and friendships that stand till date. To the amazing crew, especially Alan Amin, @anaitashroffadajania @mayurpuri Nirav and @vaibhavi.merchant for making us look, sound and move so cool. To the audience, for the love and acceptance. My favourite memory of Dhoom was… Once the first teaser trailer was ready, Yash uncle ( the great Yash Chopra) called my father to see it. He especially organised for him to see it on the big screen as opposed to the edit room. After seeing it and then making the projectionist repeat it several times, when they walked out together, I still remember Yash uncle saying with immense pride ______ __ _____ ______ _____ ___ the boys have made a good film. Coming from two men we had grown up in front of and whom we idolised it was the greatest stamp of approval ever. Today, when I think about the entire process of making Dhoom, I smile! And THAT is the greatest feeling! #Dhoom #15yrsofDhoom #DhoomMachale

A post shared by Abhishek Bachchan (@bachchan) on Aug 27, 2019 at 2:49am PDT

He also shared an interesting anecdote about his father Amitabh Bachchan and ‘uncle’ Yash Chopra, who were really taken by the film’s first teaser. Chopra invited Bachchan Sr to the studio for a special screening of the film’s teaser, which they apparently watched more than once, asking the projectionist to play it again and again. According to Abhishek Bachchan, both Yash Chopra and Amitabh Bachchan walked out with their faces beaming with pride saying ‘ladko ne achhi picture banaayi hai‘ (the boys have made a good film) – something Abhishek couldn’t believe considering the collective experience of nearly nine decades between the two veterans.

In many ways, Dhoom established both Abhishek Bachchan and John Abraham as mainstream heroes, who are the only two actors continuing to work in 2019. Dhoom went on to birth two more films, with Hrithik Roshan and Aamir Khan playing the main antagonist in Dhoom 2 and Dhoom 3 respectively. Abhishek Bachchan, on the other hand, made a comeback of sorts with last year’s Manmarziyaan. He’s set to appear in the second season of Amazon Prime’s Breathe.

Here’s the first teaser of Dhoom: