Delhi University: A recent episode of Kaun Banega Crorepati featured Kirori Mal College (KMC), Delhi University, allowing host Amitabh Bachchan to revisit his years at the institution. Bachchan graduated from KMC with a BSc degree in 1962, and the college has long been associated with his early exposure to theatre and acting.
A KMC delegation led by Principal Dinesh Khattar met Bachchan on the KBC sets ahead of his birthday. During the interaction, the principal formally invited him to inaugurate the renovated Frank Thakurdas Memorial Auditorium, while Bachchan recalled his college days and Thakurdas’s influence on his career. The KBC segment showed the college campus and hostel, evoking memories for Bachchan. Giving a tour of the Kirori Mal College hostel, he further noted that a few things have never changed, for example, the newspaper stands in front of the hostel mess, tied with a lock. A post shared by Kirori Mal College (@kmcollegedelhi) Students mentioned that it is a privilege to learn acting from the same place where Bachchan learned and started his journey. Seth advised him to meet Frank Thakurdas. Thakurdas, who had little knowledge of Hindi plays, talked to Professor Bhalla of St Stephens College, Delhi University, and translated and adapted Shakespeare’s ‘Hamlet’ in Hindi. The college presented the play, and Bachchan was given the lead role. Arora also recalled Bachchan’s BSc journey, showing the science block of the college and its corridors that reminded them of the bollywood star. For KMC, the moment was more than celebrity nostalgia. The college’s Frank Thakurdas Memorial Auditorium is closely tied to Bachchan’s theatrical beginnings. The college mentioned in a social media post online that Bachchan extended his support towards the renovation of the Frank Thakurdas Memorial Auditorium.
Also present on the hot seat, actress Madhuri Dixit said that we are all fans of Bachchan’s “cult acting” and “iconic dialogues”. In the clips circulated online and shared by several social media pages of the college, Professor Keval Arora traced the college journey of Bachchan, stating that as one enters the college premises, they are told that it is Amitabh Bachchan’s college. Ganesh Seth, an alumnus of the institute, recalled that Bachchan once went to him and told that he wanted to act.
