A day after megastar Amitabh Bachchan was criticised for not wearing a helmet while riding pillion with a crew member, the actor clarified he was "just fooling around". On Tuesday, Big B took to his blog and said that he was on the sets of his upcoming project and a formal permission was taken for shoot at a lane in Ballard Estate, Mumbai.
The actor added he was just giving the impression that he travelled on bike to save time. Big B had earlier claimed that he didn't know who the bike rider was.
Big B REACTS after being criticised for riding without helmet
"Aahhhhhhh .. the impotency of content .. Much made out of the bike picture .. ! How you moving on street with stranger ..? No security ..? You are loved take care ..? And then .. NO HELMET .. !!!!!! The fact of the matter is that this is on location shoot on the street of Mumbai .. It is Sunday .. formal permission taken for shoot at a lane in Ballard Estate .. permission sought for Sunday because all offices are shut and there is no public or traffic," he wrote in his official blog.
'Did NOT break any traffic rules'
"One lane in the region BLOCKED off by Police permission for shoot .. the lane barely 30-40 meters .. The dress I wear is my costume for the film ..AND .. I AM JUST FOOLING AROUND BY GETTING ON THE BIKE , OF A CREW MEMBER .. NOT EVEN MOVING ANY WHERE, BUT GIVING THE IMPRESSION THAT I TRAVELLED TO SAVE TIME .. 🤣 .. But yes I would do it if there was a problem of punctuality .. and wear helmet and follow all the rules and regulations of the traffic guide lines," he added.
He also recalled Akshay Kumar doing the same to reach the location of shoot on time.
"I AM NOT THE ONLY ONE THAT DOES THIS .. had seen Akshay Kumar do this to get to location on time .. wore helmet etc., on the bike of his Security person .. no one could recognise .. and it was rapid and efficient .. and it worked well .. Thank you all for your concern and your care and love and your spanking me and trolling .. !!! And sorry , people , for causing concern and giving any wrong concept of breaking traffic rules .. I did not," he concluded.
Mumbai Police to take action
As soon as photo of the actor riding pillion on the streets of Mumbai went viral, netizens slammed him for not wearing helmets. Several users also tagged the Mumbai Police on Instagram and Twitter and questioned if it was fine for a celebrity to violate such an important rule whereas common citizens are slapped with hefty fines on doing the same.
Later, the official Twitter handle of Mumbai Police confirmed that strict action will be taken against Big B.
For those unversed, Big B had shared a picture of himself riding pillion with a biker. He wrote that while he did not know the man, he obliged when he offered him a lift to zoom past the city's traffic.
Amitabh Bachchan's upcoming projects
Meanwhile, on the work front, Big B has a slew of films lined up on his slate. The 80-year-old has been working round the clock of late, shooting for numerous films, commercials and other projects. He is known to keep his fans updated with the happenings in his daily life with his quirky social media posts.
He was last seen in Sooraj Barjatya's 'Uunchai' alongside Anupam Kher, Boman Irani, Neena Gupta and Parineeti Chopra.
The actor is set to return as a host with the latest season of Kaun Banega Crorepati.
He is all set to share the screen with Prabhas and Deepika Padukone in 'Project K'. Big B recently also announced his new film 'Section 84', which is said to be a courtroom thriller helmed by Ribhu Dasgupta.
Bachchan also has the remake of the Hollywood classic 'The Intern' with Deepika in the pipeline.
