Movie: Sholay(Hindi) (1975)

Every once in a while, a movie comes by and makes an impact on audiences and changes the film industry forever. In Bollywood, Sholay is that movie. Touted the’Spice Western’ it was released in 1975 and ran continuously in a theatre in Bombay(Mumbai) for more than five years. It was the first 70mm movie in India and grossed a record 35 Crores.

Inspector Thakur, brilliantly played by the late thespian Sanjeev Kumar hires two ex cons, Veeru(Dharmendra) and Jay(Amitabh Bachan) to avenge the massacre of his family by the bandit Gabbar Singh. The late Amjad Khan who made a debut appearance in the infamous role of Gabbar symbolized evil and fear among the Indian public. Dharmendra as Veeru portrays a wild, happy-go-lucky criminal excellently. Amitabh plays Jay, the more layed-back and soft spoken of the two. Hema Malini plays the annoying but lovable Vasanti.

Gabbar Singh became a legend in India with children quoting his dialog and doing impersonations of the diabolical killer. Sanjeev Kumar portray as Thakur as a strong, steel willed personality. All characters became household names in India. I remember listening to Sholay songs in a 33 RPM vinyl record player.

What I like about this movie most is originality of plot and the depth of each character. There is unapologetic violence throughout, that comes off the screen and shakes the viewer. The comedy is brief and original. The romance is dramatic and the songs are melodious.

It changes Indian Cinema forever. Movies could be classified using Sholay as a landmark. There were the pre-Sholay movies and the post Sholay movies. It has often been imitated but never duplicated. There is only one Sholay. Most recently,at the Indian Filmfare awards, it was adjudged the best film in 50 years. If you watch just one Hindi /Indian movie in your lifetime, make it Sholay.

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