Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan have been married for 52 years, and as one of the most prominent couples in the country, much has been written about their love. In a recent KBC episode, Amitabh recalled a tale from their early marriage, when Jaya stormed out of a screening after seeing him perform.

On the special episode, Amitabh was accompanied by Farhan Akhtar and Javed Akhtar, who asked him whether there was anything Jaya disliked about him. “She has a lot of complaints with me, and I can’t count all of them. If she watches me commit a single mistake on screen, she will point it out that very second. She won’t look at the story, my acting, or anything,” he said.

Amitabh Bachchan talks about Mere Angne Mein

Amitabh remembered an anecdote from the early 1980s, when he worked on the film Laawaris. Big B recalled, “It had a song called ‘Mere Angne Mein’. I don’t know why I thought that if I am talking about different wives, I should portray the wives myself. So I played all of the types of wives that I mentioned. Then we had a trial screening for the film, and the song came on. Without skipping a beat, she got up and left. She told me, ‘How can you ever do something like this?’ Bohot daanta mujhe (she scolded me a lot).”

Big B went on to explain how, in live shows, when he would perform the song, he would call women on stage for each verse except one. He said, “I would choose a woman from the crowd to join me for all the different verses. We used to dance and sing, and sometimes some of them would even kiss me on the cheek. When the verse about the short-heighted wife would come, I would tell the crowd that ‘Ham nahi bulayege aapko‘ (I won’t call anyone on the stage) because I already have a short wife.’ So I used to call Jaya, pick her up in my arms, and then perform. She would be holding the mic, and I always thought she would say something, but she was only concerned with wiping the lipstick off my cheek.”

Jaya Bachchan shares an anecdote

Jaya Bachchan has always maintained a sense of discipline around her, and the actor confronts individuals when things get out of hand. During an appearance on her daughter Shweta Bachchan`s YouTube podcast in 2024, she stated that manners are essential in every relationship. “Ek cheez jo mujhe bahut buri lagti hai jab log ‘tu’ aur ‘tum’ karke baat karte hai… chahiye kisse se bhi ho… Aapne kabhi mujhe nana ko tum se baat karte huye suna hai? (One thing that really upsets me is when people address others with ‘tu’, ‘tum’, or whatever it may be. Have you ever heard me using ‘tum’ for your grandfather?)” she said.