Amitabh Bachchan before the fame: Bollywood’s greatest star slept rough on a Mumbai bench, was ‘too tall’ for film – and ‘Mr Sexy Baritone’ was even rejected by All India Radio

Star of evergreen classics Sholay, Zanjeer and Deewaar, Amitabh Bachchan has dominated Bollywood since the 1970s, but the film star and Instagram icon’s childhood and early years in the film industry make quite the rags-to-riches story – from being homeless in Mumbai to constant rejection because he was ‘too tall’