Not Amitabh Bachchan, but this actor was biggest superstar of 1970s, Sajid Khan says Big B became superstar after...

We all have this common notion that Amitabh Bachchan ruled the decade of 1970s. With films like Zanjeer, Sholay, Suhaag, Deewaar, Don, and several other blockbusters, the audience considers him the biggest superstar of the 70s. However, director Sajid Khan has now made a surprising claim, stating that Big B wasn't the biggest superstar of the golden era of 70s. 

Recently, the Housefull director appeared on Bharti Singh, Harsh Limbachiyaa's podcast. While discussing cinema, Bollywood and stardom, Sajid highlighted that Big B wasn't the superstar of the 1970s, but it was Dharmendra. Sajid asked Bharti and Harsh, "Agar main aap se pucho, 70s ka sabse bada hero kaun that?" Harsh instantly named "Amitabh Bachchan," and Bharti agreed. Sajid smiled and replied, "70s ke agar koi blockbuster agar koi hero maana jaata tha, toh woh Dharmendra saab the box office pe."

Sajid named Manoj Kumar a bigger star than Dharmendra, and even called him the 'most successful of all time' filmmaker. The Heyy Baby director went on to claim that the majority of films in the 2000s, 2010s or the filmmakers have taken inspiration from Kumar's films. 

Watch Sajid Khan on Amitabh Bachchan, Dharmendra, and Manoj Kumar

Director Sajid Khan mentioned #Dharmendra as the biggest star of 70s and most BLOCKBUSTER hero of that time. #ManojKumar was 2nd biggest star after him. He also exposed #AmitabhBachchan paid PR which tried to sabotage others stars of that era#SunnyDeol #jaat2 #Jaat pic.twitter.com/Y660DOED00

— Dr. Sandeep Dangi (@Sandeep84301587) May 9, 2025

Speaking about Amitabh Bachchan's stardom, Sajid said, "Amitabh Bachchan ki stardom 1978 se shuru hui, Muqaddar Ka Sikandar se. Usse pehle Amitabh Bachchan was a star, not a superstar." Harsh countered him that after Sholay, Bachchan was considered a star, and Sajid instantly corrected him, "He was a star after Sholay. Zanjeer ke baad bhi woh star nahi bane. 11-12 flops ke baad toh Zanjeer aayi thi." 

This clip has gone viral on the internet, and netizens are divided. The user who shared the video on X wrote, "Director Sajid Khan mentioned #Dharmendra as the biggest star of the 70s and the most BLOCKBUSTER hero of that time. Manoj Kumar was the 2nd biggest star after him. He also exposed Amitabh Bachchan's paid PR, which tried to sabotage other stars of that era." While another netizen mocked Sajid, and wrote, "Sajid Khan claimed people used to call him Indian #Spielberg. So better to ignore. Amitabh Bachchan topped Rajesh Khanna post Deewaar, and KAKA became a superstar when Dharmendra and Manoj Kumar were functional because of the influence both on and off screen."