‘102 Not Out’: Amitabh - Rishi’s Amazing Partnership Continues

27 years later Amitabh Bachchan and Rishi Kapoor once again weave magic on the big screen with ‘102 Not Out’.

Well played! Amitabh Bachchan and Rishi Kapoor in 102 Not Out.

Amitabh Bachchan and Rishi Kapoor have hit it out of the park with 102 Not Out. Bachchan as the lively 102-year-old Dattatraya Vakharia and Kapoor as the 75-year-old grumpy Babulal Vakharia put up an engaging father and son act, keeping the audience in splits and tears for over 1 hour 40 minutes. No doubt, the two veteran actors have great material to work on. Story, screenplay and dialogue writer Saumya Joshi, who is also the playwright of the original Gujarati play by the same name, gives both Bachchan and Kapoor ample scope to display their histrionics.

Big B and Chintu, charm the audience with their roles - Bachchan, who wants to break the record of the oldest living man in China pits his eccentricities against Kapoor, who just exists and has stopped actually “living” his life.

Many life lessons are learnt and unlearnt as the two journey from start to end credits with plenty of drama and melodrama abound. While the play or theatre-like quality of the narrative is perceptible, it is the presence of Bachchan and Kapoor that makes the Umesh Shukla directed 102 Not Out a larger than life, memorable experience.

Amitabh Bachchan and Rishi Kapoor first shared the screen back in 1976 for Yash Chopra’s Kabhie Kabhi and barring the eminently forgettable Ajooba, the two stars have delivered a successful entertainer each time they’ve come together and 102 Not Out is another addition to that list.

Here’s a quick look at Amitabh Bachchan and Rishi Kapoor’s previous outings:

Kabhi Kabhie (1976)

Shashi Kapoor, Rishi Kapoor and Amitabh Bachchan on the sets of Kabhi Kabhie.

Rishi Kapoor almost didn’t do this Yash Chopra multi-starrer because he thought Neetu Singh had the meatier role. A love story across generations, Bachchan played a poet, going against the ‘angry young man’ image in films like Zanjeer and Deewar, while Rishi Kapoor played the younger college heart-throb who romances Neetu Singh.

A romantic drama also featuring Shashi Kapoor, Rakhee and Waheeda Rehman in important roles, Kabhi Kabhie was the reason why Karan Johar got hooked on to Hindi films.

Amar Akbar Anthony (1977)

A poster of Amar Akbar Anthony.

An out and out Manmohan Desai entertainer, Amar Akbar Anthony is a film that an entire generation still swears by when it comes to defining a typical Bollywood commercial fare. A delicious concoction of the lost and found formula, this multi-starrer had Rishi Kapoor play Akbar Illahabadi while Amitabh Bachchan lived out Anthony Gonsalves.

Remember that scene where Nirupa Roy regains her eye-sight in a miraculous moment? Rishi Kapoor points out that it’s no longer incredulous as it seemed to be.

For Bachchan, Amar Akbar Anthony remains a classic.

Naseeb (1981)

Amitabh Bachchan and Rishi Kapoor play brothers once again in this Manmohan Desai film. A tale of destiny, luck, love, sacrifice and revenge, Naseeb is Desai at his commercial best. Again a multi-starrer with Shatrughan Sinha, Hema Malini and Reena Roy in important roles - Naseeb is mostly memorable for the delightful chemistry between Rishi Kapoor and Amitabh Bachchan.

Watch a scene and song from Naseeb featuring Big B and Chintu here:

Coolie (1983)

Rishi Kapoor, Rati Agnihotri and Amitabh Bachchan on the poster of Coolie.

Amitabh Bachchan and Rishi Kapoor star as Iqbal and Sunny Khan in this action drama directed by Manmohan Desai once again. Well, you can’t have Desai and not have the lost and found formula playing out. Bachchan and Kapoor are long lost cousins who reunite to take on their family’s arch enemy Zafar Khan played by Kader Khan.

If you want to sample how crazy the Rishi-Amitabh jugalbandi can get, take a peek at this song from Coolie.

Ajooba (1991)

Rishi Kapoor and Amitabh Bachchan with Shashi Kapoor on the sets of Ajooba.

The only misfire from the Amitabh Bachchan-Rishi Kapoor jodi, Ajooba was a disaster from the word go. Directed by Shashi Kapoor, Ajooba has Amitabh as a masked crusader and Rishi as his best friend who are out to defeat an evil Vazir. This Arabian Nights like tale turned into a nightmare for everyone involved.

For Bollywood fans, Ajooba would have been the last Amitabh - Rishi film to remember the duo’s chemistry by, thankfully, we now have 102 Not Out. Well played, lambuji and tinguji!