Amitabh Bachchan, 84, rules out retirement: 'Why should I think of giving up?'

Amitabh Bachchan has no plans to stop working. The actor recently turned 84. In a new interview with journalist Subhash K Jha, he asked why people are "so keen to retire" him. He said he has come "to the jaws of death and then been pulled back", and believes someone somewhere has protected him all these years.

He sees no reason to celebrate his birthday and calls it a day like any other. What matters to him is that he is still working and that his body keeps pace with his spirit.

Birthdays did have a family ritual. His father, the poet Harivansh Rai Bachchan, would recite a poem for whoever in the family was celebrating. After Amitabh's near-fatal accident on the sets of Coolie, that reading took on a new meaning. His father broke down while reciting it, the only time Amitabh says he ever saw him like that.

Bachchan stepped away from films once before, when he entered politics in 1984. After he left politics, he never thought about retiring again. His company ABCL ran into trouble in the 1990s and left him facing bankruptcy. Even so, he still calls himself bad with economics and finance, and says he has never known how to market himself.

On why his career has lasted, he pointed to its variety. He said very few other actors have had this kind of range. He worked with Yash Chopra, Hrishikesh Mukherjee and Manmohan Desai in the 1970s and 1980s, and with newer directors in recent years. He has now found acceptance as a senior character and plans to build on that.

Directing is off the table. He said he does not know the craft well enough to even dream of it. He does share ideas with his directors, but they mostly reject them, and those films have done well. In his words, the director is the captain of the ship.

When asked about his unfulfilled wishes, he named three: to play the piano, to work with Guru Dutt, and to spend more time with his family.

On television, he is currently hosting the 18th season of Kaun Banega Crorepati.