Quiz master Phanindra Ivatury of the Netherlands shares his narrative on the timeless Bollywood classic “Sholay”, which was replayed on the big screen in the Netherlands.
UTRECHT (The Netherlands), Aug 18 (Bernama) -- The movie-going population in the Netherlands were in for a pleasant surprise last month.
A Bollywood Summer Movie Festival, organised by the famous cinema chain “Kinepolis”, kicked off with a red carpet premiere screening of the iconic Hindi film “Sholay”.
It offered the rarest of rare opportunity for the diaspora population a chance to watch this timeless classic unleash on the big screen.
On the day of screening, though I had the barcoded movie ticket on my mobile, I walked up to the Box Office counter and insisted on a printed ticket. As someone who belonged to the steadfast “Sholay” cult for decades, that paper entry pass provided me an ultimate memorabilia proof of having watched the film yet again for the umpteenth time in a theatre, but on this occasion at an international venue.
Living in the times of OTT revolution, where it is becoming a struggle even for some big budget films to grab the big screen attention of viewers, the prospect of “theatre watching” a classic that was on the cusp of its Golden Jubilee year of release, carried a surreal feeling.
The Adrenaline Rush:
As our big group settled into their seats and the credits were about to roll, I made a firm decision to keep my pumped up excitement in check and not to rattle off dialogues and trivia from the movie during the screening. Didn’t want to be giving away spoilers for first timers or be a fanatic “Sholay” fan nuisance to others.
In no time that bubble burst when the credits started rolling. Upon seeing actor Dharmendra’s name first, a good friend sitting next to me popped up an innocent Question in thin air.
“Why didn’t Amitabh Bachchan’s name appear first in the order of credits?” That was enough trigger for me to come up with a quicksilver response “His name appears fourth in the credits behind Dharmendra, Sanjeev Kumar and Hema Malini, who were his seniors.”
Amazed at my insane “Sholay” trivia grasp, this amused friend of mine could only smile and pat my back.
“Sholay”, one of the greatest and most influential movies ever made in India was first released on 15th August, 1975.
An All Time Classic:
The first thing that always struck me about “Sholay” was its striking movie poster, which arguably lives up to its two tag lines – “The Greatest Story Ever Told” and “The Greatest Star-Cast Ever Assembled”.
Penned by Salim-Javed, who are often hailed as the writer duo instrumental in scripting Amitabh Bachchan’s filmy success, and crafted by maverick director Ramesh Sippy, “Sholay’s primary cast can be hailed as the golden greats of Hindi cinema”.
My first theatre experience of “Sholay” happened as a little boy, clutching my big cousin’s arm tight at the very sight of “Gabbar Singh”, a dreaded dacoit character from the film, which still stands for me as the epitome of motion picture villainy.
The Iconic “Gabbar Singh”:
Late Actor Amjad Khan, who was high-octane as “Gabbar Singh” in the movie, had to live the rest of his on-screen life under the dominant halo of that character though his multi-faceted persona and other great screen performances tried their best to break away.
The character also held a stranglehold on the definition of a Hindi cinema villain from there on, leading to inevitable comparisons every time a movie came up with some sort of notable villainy.
Ramesh Sippy himself tried his herculean best to recreate the aura of “Gabbar Singh” in a different mold through the antagonist character of “Shakaal” in his next movie “Shaan”, a role brilliantly portrayed by actor Kulbhushan Kharbanda.
I always wonder who would one pick if they were to choose only one between “Gabbar” and “Shakaal”. After thoughts, I would assume that “Gabbar” would win by a fair margin over “Shakaal”.
Jai and Veeru - The Dream Team:
Post “Sholay’s” mega success, Amitabh Bachchan had acted in many twin hero movies with a host of other stars but it can be argued that no other combination could even hold a candle to the equation he had with Dharmendra in the film. Their portrayal of “Jai” and “Veeru” had a hypnotic quality to it.
One Jai-Veeru bonding moment from the film is forever etched in my memory. In the heartbreaking climax, while smoking out Gabbar’s henchmen, Jai succumbs to injuries and dies in the hands of Veeru. When a raging Veeru lets out an intense war cry “Gabbar Singh, aa raha hoon mein” (“Gabbar Singh, I’m coming”), the raw emotion gets you scared for the scare himself – “Gabbar”.
When the Dharmendra-Amitabh Bachchan pair reunited in 1980 for Vijay Anand’s “Ram Balram”, the pre-release euphoria was phenomenal. I can personally vouch for it as I ended up losing my footwear trying to gain a foothold in the ticket queue on the opening day. It was a secret fan boy story which you never wanted your parents to know.
“Bubbly Basanti”:
Just picture this. Legend has it that actor Danny Denzongpa was the original choice for the role of “Gabbar” and since he couldn’t allot dates (as he was committed to Feroz Khan’s “Dharmatma”), Amjad Khan walked into the iconic role.
Interestingly, both “Dharmatma” and “Sholay” released in the same year, a few months apart. Guess who was the common lead star in both the movies? “Dream Girl” Hema Malini.
While her bubbly “Basanti” turn in, “Sholay” is now a part of India’s filmy vernacular, “Dharmatma” sees her effortlessly transform into an exotic Afghan gypsy gyrating to chartbusters.
Hema Malini, a popular onscreen diva belonging to many multi-starrer Bollywood hits which captured the filmy zeitgeist of 70s-80s, her “Basanti” act probably takes the crown from any other thing she had ever portrayed. Period.
“Thakur Baldev Singh” and “Radha”:
Late actor Sanjeev Kumar was profound as “Thakur Baldev Singh”, an upright former cop looking for vengeance. His character forms the core crux of the film. Sanjeev Kumar and Amjad Khan, two acting powerhouses from the movie, have gone too soon in real life.
Jaya Bachchan is dignity personified as “Radha”, the hapless “Bahu” (daughter-in-law) of Baldev Singh, who fights misfortune till the very end.
Electric Technical Credits:
The goose bump-evoking music and background score for “Sholay” was provided by Rahul Dev Burman, a second generation music genius who had pioneered Indianising western music with such proclivity for quality.
Many evocative frames from the cinematography of Late Dwarka Divecha for the film are still firmly lodged in my visual memory. When this film first released, it not only broke box office barriers but provided many “celluloid firsts” which one hadn’t experienced ever before.
“Film of the Millennium”:
Of all the innumerable accolades bestowed on “Sholay”, the ones that stood out for me were by BBC India, which conferred on it the above title, and the other by famous film critic Anupama Chopra, who actually authored a book on the movie. She remarked, “Sholay” is “no longer just a film but an event”. A marvel of an event which came all the way to Utrecht, (the pretty city where I live in the Netherlands) to regale the cinema going world, once again. As always.
-- BERNAMA
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