“Deviyon aur Sajjano!” Is that Amitabh Bachchan’s photograph that you are looking at, what do you think? If you believe that the picture of an old man posing in black round spectacles is the Shahenshah of Hindi cinema, then I must tell you that the portrait has tricked you. Well, honestly, for a moment, even I had believed that it must be Big B’s new look from any upcoming project that he must be working for. What an uncanny resemblance of this man with the megastar, right?
The viral photo grabbed my attention on Twitter this morning, thanks to @KabirTaneja, who attached the screenshot of the original post in his tweet. The Twitter user wrote, “Genuinely thought it’s Amitabh Bachchan for a moment.” And I second that.
Netizens are wowed by his resemblance with Amitabh Bachchan:
Wait isn’t it Khuda Gawah remake promo?
-asinaib
So, what’s the truth behind this viral photo? You ask. It is an old picture captured by legendary photographer Steve McCurry in 2017. McCurry had recently posted this throwback picture on Instagram to commemorate World Refugee Day. As per his caption, the portrait is of Shabuz, an Afghan refugee living in Pakistan, who was 68 years old back then.
It is not the first time this photo has gone viral on the internet. Cut to 2018, an India TV report suggests that McCurry’s portrait had earlier grabbed headlines ahead of the release of Thugs of Hindostan. Many people were convinced that the viral photo was Big B’s look from the 2018 film.
In case you don’t remember, this was the actual look of Amitabh Bachchan for the aforementioned film.
On the work front, speculation is rife that Amitabh Bachchan will star opposite Shah Rukh Khan in Farhan Akhtar’s Don 3. While Big B starred in the original Don (1978), SRK stepped into his shoes for its remake with the same name, Don (2006) and later in its second installment, Don 2 (2011).
Amitabh Bachchan also has films like Brahmastra, Good Bye, The Intern remake and Project K in the pipeline.
Coming back to the viral photo, what a magician Steve McCurry is!