‘Bachchanalia’: 300 Big B memorabilia to be auctioned ahead of his 81st b’day

MUMBAI — Ahead of his 81st birthday (October 11), Bollywood’s evergreen emperor Amitabh Bachchan will be honoured with ‘Bachchanalia’ – an auction of over 300 memorabilia, spanning his 55 years’ looming presence and contributions to the film industry.

The auction by deRivaz & Ives will take place October 5-7, as a tribute to his long and illustrious career and affords his fans and collectors a chance to own a ‘historic piece’ of his stupendous cinematic journey since 1969.

Up for grabs will be iconic film posters, photographs, lobby cards, showcards, film booklets and original artworks of several of his epochal movies that contributed to his metamorphoses – from a struggler to an actor, star, heart-throb, a superstar, a legend and the veteran of 200-plus films now acknowledged as a ‘Yug Purush’.

Going under the hammer shall be a rare set of two showcards of his blockbuster “Zanjeer” (1973), an original, hand-made collage crafted from silver gelatin photographic prints, poster paint and meticulous manual and screen-printed lettering.

“These unique pieces are a testament to the artistic craftsmanship of yesteryears, offering a glimpse into the intricate process that once brought the magic of cinema to life. Some are priced around INR 8,000 and some in the range of INR 100,000 per piece,” said an official for the auctioneers.

The “Deewaar” (1975) showcard has been designed by Diwakar Karkare, the designer behind several of Bachchan’s publicity artworks of the 1970s and 80s.

A set of six exceptionally designed first release showcards of Shankar Mukherjee’s “Faraar” (1975), created by Karkare, is also on offer, bringing alive the memories of the Gulzar-scripted thriller, and famed for the lilting Kishore Kumar-Lata Mangeshkar duet “Main Pyasa Tum Sawan”.

That same year another film created history, “Sholay” (1975) and echoing the heart-pounding excitement of that flick, fans can bid for a set of 15 re-release photographic stills mounted on lobby cards, showcasing some of the most memorable scenes from Ramesh Sippy’s classic creation.

Another lot on offer will be four private photos from Sippy’s exclusive post-release party, giving a peek into the behind-the-scenes magic of the record-creating “Sholay” with a cult following.

Going up for bids shall be a rare collection of posters of Bachchan’s memorable films like “Majboor” (1974), “Mr Natwarlal” (1979), “The Great Gambler” (1979), “Silsila” and “Kaalia” (1981), “Naseeb” (1986), among others.

A rare studio portrait of Amitabh Bachchan shot by the glamour photographer Gautam Rajadhyaksha and another featuring two superstars – Rajesh Khanna and Amitabh Bachchan – from an exclusive photo-shoot done for a film magazine (Movie)’s cover story, shall also be auctioned.

There are different original artworks of Bachchan, through the eyes of young artistes like Safdar Shamee, Sailesh Acharekar, Mithu Biswal, Anil Soni, and their unique interpretations of the legendary superstar.

The company official said that these have been carefully curated and sourced from all over India including small or private collectors, dealers of film memorabilia, small galleries or old collections from artists, producers, distributors, academics, journalists, film historians, families of his co-stars and even fans.

After huge sales were notched during the ‘Bharat & Barsaat’ auction in Aug. 2023 and Satyajit Ray in Sep. 2023, now, deRivaz & Ives are developing a Film Memorabilia Department and foraying onto the global theatre.

After the ‘Bachchanalia’ auction in Oct. 2023, coming up later this year will be Bollywood ‘Feminine Icons’ and ‘The Cinema of Raj Kapoor at 100’, before venturing into Hollywood auctions from 2024.

(Quaid Najmi can be contacted at: q.najmi@ians.in)

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Bachchanalia