Sholay: The Making of a Classic

Released on 15 August 1975, Sholay ran in theatres for over five years, and altered the course of Indian cinema. Even today, it remains the box office gold standard, a reference point for both the Indian film-going audience and the film industry. For Sholay is not merely a film, it is the ultimate classic; it is myth. The characters—Veeru , Jai, Gabbar, the Thakur, Basanti, Radha, Soorma Bhopali and Sambha—are the stuff of folklore. Even the starring animal, Dhanno the mare, has been immortalized. In this book, film journalist Anupama Chopra tells the fascinating story of how a four-line idea grew to become the greatest blockbuster of Indian cinema. Starting with the tricky process of casting, moving on to the actual filming over two years in a barren, rocky landscape, and finally the first few weeks after the film’s release when the audience stayed away and the trade declared it a flop, this is a story as dramatic and entertaining as Sholay itself. With the skill of a consummate storyteller, Anupama Chopra describes Amitabh Bachchan’s struggle to convince the Sippys to choose him, an actor with ten flops behind him, over the flamboyant Shatrughan Sinha; the last-minute confusion over dates that led to Danny Dengzongpa’s exit from the film, handing the role of Gabbar Singh to Amjad Khan; and the budding romance between Hema Malini and Dharmendra during the shooting that made the spot boys some extra money and almost killed Amitabh.