Sharing anecdotes from his growing up years, the 29-year-old "Gunday" star said Bachchan has been a source of inspiration through out his life.
"Amitabh Bachchan has had a serious great influence on Indian pop culture and on me. He is an icon, a living legend in the truest sense. My earliest and fondest memories of engaging with Hindi cinema are all directly related to Amitabh Bachchan.
"My dadi (grandmother) used to say that I should grow up and become a hero like him. Once at a party, I was dancing and the crowd gathered and they started whistled and clapped. That was my first experience of being a performer and the song was Amitabh Bachchan's famous number 'Juma Chumma'," Ranveer told a session at the India Today Conclave 2015 here.
The "Band Baaja Baaraat" actor said at a time when he had no hopes of making it big in the film industry as he was an outsider with no connections, Bachchan became a turning point in his life.
"The question of becoming a hero was getting bigger and serious for me day by day. I was an outsider, so I felt I didn't have a chance. But I wanted to be close to acting so I opted for creative writing. I went to America to pursue that and in one class I got to enact the epic 'Mere paas maa hai', a scene of 'Deewaar'.
"It was again Mr Amitabh Bachchan at a turning point in my life. No one there understood what I said but they all clapped. That was again a time I realised that I loved being a performer. I told my father that I just want to act. He asked me to complete graduation and then chase my dream. That day changed it all for me. I decided I will try my hand at becoming a Bollywood hero," he said.
Ranveer said the 72-year-old actor has touched not only his but also lives of many people around him in some way or the other.
"In coming years, I believe Bollywood will be defined as BB and AB ¿ Before Bachchan and After Bachchan."
