Looking for The Big B . Bollywood, Bachchan and Me

'Jessica, 'He pronounced, 'you have known me for seven years. My life has changed seven times. You will never finish this book.'

There is no reason why Amitabh Bachchan and I should appear in the same sentence. He is India's most legendary film star- a mixture of Clint Eastwood, Al pacino and Elvis, with more than a hint of John Travolta. In a country like India, where film stars are treated as gods, Amitabh Bachchan is the uber-god, the Big B. As for me, I am English, almost thirty, and not in the least bit famous.

But here I am in Bombay about to start writing his story. How did I get here? Why did I get here? And can I pull it off? Bombay is mayhem and Bollywood maddening. The Big B is strangely aloof, the magazines are full of lies, and no one is talking. I want to write a book that explodes the myths surrounding India's most famous man. But is there anything in there?

Funny, irreverent and affectionate, Looking for the Big B is a fascinating look at the Bombay film industry and the story of a very unlikely friendship.

A Note on the Author

Jessica Hines grew up on the Lizard in Cornwall and went to clown school in Toronto. She returned to study Comparative Religion at SOAS and do a M.A. in film at the BFI. She has achieved remarkably little in her thirty years having wasted most of her twenties inhaling pollution in Bombay. This is her first book.