Shahenshah of Bollywood, the legendary actor Amitabh Bachchan turns 76 on Thursday. The actor made his debut with Saat Hindustani in 1969. The actor, singer, producer and TV host has acted in over 190 films. With his heavy voice, intense eyes and those looks to kill anyone, it comes as no surprise that Bachchan is often labelled as the ‘Star of the Millenium.’

Even today, Big- B fans and movie buffs rewatch his evergreen movies like Deewar, Zanjeer, Agneepath, Sooryavansham and many more on repeat. It was during the 70s that Bachchan experienced his career's best phase. It was dominance over the industry that made French director Francois Truffaut call him a ‘one-man industry.’

Amitabh Bachchan has received 4 National Film Awards for his spectacular performances, 15 Filmfare Awards, and also been conferred with the Padma Shri in 1984, Padma Bhushan in 2001 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2015 for his contribution to arts. That’s not it, the Government of France has also honoured him the highest civilian honour, Knight of the Legion of Honour for his exceptional career in the world of cinema. 

Here are some unknown fact about the angry young man of Bollywood:

• He wanted to become an engineer and was keen to join the Indian Air Force

• Amitabh, famous for his heavy voice, was rejected by All India Radio

• His first salary was Rs.300

• Mehmood was also a mentor to Bachchan in his struggling days and offered him a place to stay in his own home

• The megastar gave 12 consecutive flops before his first big hit Zanjeer

• Amitabh's actual surname was Shrivastava; his father had adopted the pen-name, Bachchan, so the family adopted this surname

• His father, Harivanshrai Bachchan wanted to name him Inquilab before deciding on Amitabh (unending brilliance)

• Amitabh is known to suffer from asthma and also has a rare muscular disorder known as myasthenia gravis