‘Took my father a decade to have the honour’: Abhishek Bachchan says he was set to debut with Dilip Kumar

Abhishek Bachchan has said that he was originally supposed to make his Bollywood debut alongside Dilip Kumar with their film, Aakhri Mughal. Dilip Kumar died Wednesday morning following prolonged illness and is survived by actor wife Saira Banu. He had been admitted to a Mumbai hospital recently.

Abhishek Bachchan, who was also seen paying his last respects to Dilip Kumar at the burial ground in Juhu, revealed that the late actor was set to play his onscreen father in Aakhri Mughal. Abhishek made his debut in 2000 with Refugee where he featured opposite Kareena Kapoor.

The Big Bull star shared a picture with the late actor on Instagram and wrote, “My first film was to be Aakhri Mughal. Dilip sahab was to play my father in the film. I clearly remember my father (Amitabh Bachchan) telling me that it took him over a decade to have the honour of sharing screen space with his idol. And here I was given that opportunity in my debut film. He told me to cherish this opportunity and to learn and observe as much as I could by watching the master at work. A film in which I get to work with my idol’s idol!! How lucky was I? Sadly the film never got made and I never had the honour of being able to say that I’ve been in a film with the great Dilip Kumar Ji.”

He further wrote, “Today, an entire era of cinema came to an end. Thankfully many generations will be able to watch and learn but most importantly enjoy and respect the immense talent of Dilip sahab through his movies. We thank you for blessing us with your work, wisdom, talent and love. Rest in peace. My deepest condolences to Saira Banu Ji and the family.”

Also read: Dilip Kumar: Six decades on the silver screen

Dilip Kumar was buried with full state honours in Mumbai. The 98-year-old actor died following prolonged illness. According to a PTI report, around 100 people gathered at at the Juhu Qabrastan in Santacruz Mumbai for the actor’s burial. Of those, not more than 25-30 people were allowed inside the crematorium.