Zanjeer

Zanjeer is a 1973 Hindi action-thriller film directed and produced by Prakash Mehra, starring Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bachchan, Pran, Ajit and Bindu. The movie changed the trend from romantic films to action films and pioneered Amitabh's new image of a brooding but explosive person who fights back when cornered. He was now known as "The Angry Young Man." The film started a new wave in Hindi Cinema. At a time, when India was suffering from corruption, low economic growth etc., and the common man was left with frustration and anger over the system, Hindi Cinema turned violent and aggressive. Reflecting the anger of the masses, Amitabh Bachchan became the new hero, who had the courage to fight against the wrong and maintaining moral values at the same time. This film also ended the struggling period for Amitabh and turned him into a rising star. Zanjeer, thus remains an important film in the history of Indian Cinema and is regarded as a classic today. The film became a "super-hit", collecting 60 million at the box office and was the fourth highest grossing film of 1973. The plotline has many similarities to the Hollywood movie Death Rides a Horse.