Sholay

Sholay

Album Category: Hindi, Film
Year: 1975
Music Director: R.D. Burman
Lyricist: Anand Bakshi
Label: Polydor
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Album Credits: MUSIC ASSISTANTS: Basu Chakravarty, Manohari Singh, Maruti Rao. SONGS RECORDED BY: Mangesh Desai, AT: Rajkamal Kalamandir.
 
Film Credits: DIRECTOR: Ramesh Sippy. PRODUCER: G.P. Sippy. WRITER: Salim - Javed. ACTOR: Dharmendra, More...
 



Song Listing


 
Yeh Dosti Hum Nahin Todenge (Happy)
Singer: Kishore Kumar, Manna Dey
Music Director: R.D. Burman
Lyricist: Anand Bakshi
Genre: Filmi
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Koi Haseena Jab Rooth Jaati Hai Toh
Singer: Kishore Kumar
Music Director: R.D. Burman
Lyricist: Anand Bakshi
Genre: Filmi
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Holi Ke Din
Singer: Lata Mangeshkar, Kishore Kumar
Music Director: R.D. Burman
Lyricist: Anand Bakshi
Genre: Filmi, Hindi Folk
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Yeh Dosti Hum Nahin Todenge (Sad)
Singer: Kishore Kumar
Music Director: R.D. Burman
Lyricist: Anand Bakshi
Genre: Filmi
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Title Music
Music Director: R.D. Burman
Genre: Pop, Hindi Folk, Medley
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Mehbooba Mehbooba
Singer: R.D. Burman
Music Director: R.D. Burman
Lyricist: Anand Bakshi
Genre: Filmi, Arabic
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Haan Jab Tak Hai Jaan
Singer: Lata Mangeshkar
Music Director: R.D. Burman
Lyricist: Anand Bakshi
Genre: Filmi
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Ke Chaand Sa Koi Chehra Na Pehlu Mein Ho
Singer: Kishore Kumar, Manna Dey, Bhupinder Singh, Anand Bakshi
Music Director: R.D. Burman
Lyricist: Anand Bakshi
Genre: Filmi, Sufi/Qawwali
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Awards


 
  • No award information available.

Trivia


 

    Album

  • This film was most likely inspired by Akira Kurosawa's Japanese film "Seven Samurai" (1954) or by its American adaptation "The Magnificent Seven" (1960). These films also inspired the Hindi film "Khote Sikkay" (1973) and its adaptation "Kachche Heere" (1980).[1][2]
  • The film "Mera Gaon Mera Desh" (1971) was one of the various sources of inspiration for this film. Both films had a disabled authority figure hiring good-hearted crook(s) to save his village from a gang of dacoits. While Dharmendra was the crook in "Mera Gaon Mera Desh" (1971), this film had Dharmendra and Amitabh Bachchan in similar roles. The villains in these films had similar names - Jabbar Singh in "Mera Gaon Mera Desh" (1971) played by Vinod Khanna versus the iconic Gabbar Singh in this film played by Amjad Khan. Interestingly, the authority figure in "Mera Gaon Mera Desh" (1971) was played by Jayant, the father of Amjad Khan, who played the role of Gabbar Singh in this film. Both films had the lead characters tossing coins to make important decisions. "Mera Gaon Mera Desh" (1971) was a hit when it was released, but over the years it was overshadowed by the cult status achieved by this film.[3]
  • Salim - Javed had offered the fully fleshed out script for the film "Majboor" (1974) to the Sippys when they had asked the writing duo for scripts for their next film. Ramesh Sippy was impressed by how detailed the script was but his father G.P. Sippy didn't think it would work for the ambitious vision he had for his next film. It was then that Salim - Javed pitched the brief story idea for this film to the Sippys and got their buy-in. Salim - Javed then completed the script with inputs from Ramesh Sippy, Satish Bhatnagar and Narendra Bedi. Ironically, while this film was much more successful than "Majboor" (1974), the Sippys paid Salim - Javed only Rs. 1.5 lakhs for it while producer Premji paid Rs. 2 lakhs for "Majboor" (1974).[4][5][6]
  • This was one of the three films released in 1975 in which Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bhaduri were paired together. The other two films were "Chupke Chupke" (1975) and "Mili" (1975). Their next film together was "Silsila" (1981).[7][8][9]
  • Director Ramesh Sippy had originally cast Danny Denzongpa for the role of the villain in this film. When Danny backed out due to conflicts with another film - "Dharmatma" (1975) - Ramesh Sippy signed Amjad Khan, who went on to make this a career-defining role. Khan had worked as a child artist in films in the 1950s and had debuted earlier in an adult role in "Hindustan Ki Kasam" (1972). Khan's transition into the role of Gabbar Singh for this film was not easy. His first few takes were awkward and Salim - Javed, who had recommended him for the role, began to have second thoughts about him. Javed Akhtar believed that Amjad's voice was weak and did not work for Gabbar. However, Ramesh Sippy stuck with him, and despite misgivings about Amjad Khan's suitability for the role, Gabbar became one of the most memorable characters of the film. This episode created a rift between Salim - Javed and Amjad Khan and they never worked together again after this film.[10][11][MR41]
  • The sets of the Ramgarh village of this film were built in a place called Ramanagara near Bangalore. Ramanagara was so remote that the makers of this film had to build a road between the village and the highway, and lay telephone lines in order to facilitate the shooting of the film over a period of two and a half years. The cult status the film achieved transformed Ramanagara into a popular tourist attraction especially for people from outside the state of Karnataka.
  • The dialogues of this film became extremely popular and were released separately in addition to its musical soundtrack. Salim - Javed's dialogues for "Deewar" (1975) were also released on record the same year.[12]
  • The film got in trouble with the Censor Board over its depiction of violence. They were particularly critical about the film's climax in which Sanjeev Kumar's character trampled Amjad Khan's character to death with nail studded shoes. The Censor Board told director Ramesh Sippy that he would have to change the film's ending in order to get their clearance. Sippy was adamant about not making changes to the film but was counselled by his father G.P. Sippy to accept their demand. Ramesh Sippy finally gave in since the film was just a few weeks away from release and because the strict laws of Emergency were in force in India at the time. Sanjeev Kumar, who was in Russia at the time, had to travel back to Ramanagara to shoot for the film's revised climax in which a police officer intervenes and saves the life of Amjad Khan's character. A few other edits were also made to the film before the film was accepted by the Censor Board for release. According to actor Manoj Kumar, he had used his proximity to the Information & Broadcasting Minister V.C. Shukla to help the Sippy's secure the film's clearance by the Censor Board.[13][MR41]
  • The release of this film was preceded by a publicity blitz. "The greatest film ever made" and "The greatest story ever told" were some of the taglines used in the film's publicity even before its release.
  • The reception to this film was mixed in the first few days after its release. Ramesh Sippy panicked since he had a lot at stake in the film and considered changing the film to an alternative climax in which Amitabh Bachchan's character survives. Salim - Javed vehemently opposed his proposal, and Sippy himself wasn't convinced if it was the right thing to do. He needn't have worried. The film's reputation grew by word of mouth, and in the months to come it became the highest-grossing Indian film of all time.[MR41]
  • Jagdeep's character in this film, Soorma Bhopali, was inspired by a real-life forest officer. Jagdeep was once accosted by this individual, who threatened to sue Salim - Javed for ruining his reputation in Bhopal. Jagdeep became so strongly associated with his character in this film that he wrote and directed a film titled "Soorma Bhopali" (1988) to leverage its brand.[14]
  • Encouraged by the success of his previous film "Seeta Aur Geeta" (1972), Ramesh Sippy repeated many of its cast and crew in this film. This included the actors Dharmendra, Hema Malini and Sanjeev Kumar, writers Salim - Javed, music director R.D. Burman and lyricist Anand Bakshi, among others. Sippy did briefly consider Pran for the role that Sanjeev Kumar played in the film eventually.[15][MR41]
  • Ramesh Sippy had initially considered casting Shatrughan Sinha as the second lead in this film - the character of Jai. However, he changed his mind later and picked Amitabh Bachchan for the role. Sippy felt that the film might have one star too many with Sinha and went with Amitabh, who in 1973 had yet to make a mark. The case for casting Amitabh was also strengthened by the recommendations of Salim - Javed and Dharmendra.[MR41]
  • Dharmendra had a change of heart when the film's script was narrated to him - he asked Ramesh Sippy if he could play the role of Thakur which was supposed to be played by Sanjeev Kumar. Ramesh Sippy convinced him that Veeru's role was better for him by pointing out that if he switched roles, Sanjeev Kumar would be paired with Hema Malini. Dharmendra had been pursuing Malini for some time. He was aware that Sanjeev Kumar also had feelings for her and had even proposed to her without success. Dharmendra decided that, in these circumstances, it was best to stick to playing the role of Veeru. He wooed Hema Malini during the film's making. There were stories of him bribing the film's crew to sabotage shots so he could spend more time with the actress! Their romance continued after the film, and they got married in 1980.[MR41]
  • Jaya Bhaduri became pregnant twice during the making of this film. She was pregnant with Shweta when work on the film was started and with Abhishek when it was approaching completion.
  • Filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma made the film "Ram Gopal Varma Ki Aag" (2007) and promoted it as a tribute to this film. The film was panned universally. In 2015, the Delhi High Court imposed a fine of Rs. 10 lakhs on Ram Gopal Varma for copyright violation.[16]
  • This film was re-released twice after its initial release in 1975 - first in 2004 after it was digitally remastered and later in 2014 in 3D.
  • Salim - Javed had pitched the idea of this film to Manmohan Desai but he had rejected it. They eventually ended up working with Desai for "Chacha Bhatija" (1977). It was their only film together.[17][MR34]
  • Gabbar Singh inspired the title of the film "Gabbar Is Back" (2015). The 2015 film also featured dialogues and background score themes from this film. Other than these references, there was no other connection between the two films.[18]
  • The famous "mausi" scene in the film, in which Jai talks to Mausi, played by Dina Pathak, about Veeru's marriage with Basanti, was inspired by a real-life incident. According to writer Salim Khan, he had had a similar discussion with Honey Irani's mother - Javed Akhtar's mother-in-law-to-be. The comic scene was also inspired by a similar scene in "Half Ticket" (1962).[19][20]
  • A popular line delivered by Dharmendra in this film inspired the hook lines of the Hindi film songs "In Kutton Ke Saamne Naach Basanti Naach" ("Miss Tanakpur Haazir Ho", 2015), "Naach Basanti Naach" ("Jia Aur Jia", 2017), "Basanti No Dance In Front Of These Dogs" ("Super 30", 2019), and "Basanti Aaj Kutton Ke Saamne Na Naach" ("Suraj Pe Mangal Bhari", 2020).[21][22][23][24]

    Song

  • Yeh Dosti Hum Nahin Todenge (Happy) - The whistling in this song was by R.D. Burman's long-time assistant Manohari Singh.
  • Yeh Dosti Hum Nahin Todenge (Happy) - A scene in the film "Jhoom Barabar Jhoom" (2007), starring Bobby Deol and Abhishek Bachchan, paid tribute to this iconic song in which their fathers Dharmendra and Amitabh Bachchan rode a scooter together. However, unlike their fathers in this film, Bobby was the rider, and Abhishek was in the sidecar in "Jhoom Barabar Jhoom" (2007).[25]
  • Mehbooba Mehbooba - R.D. Burman had his assistants blow air into half-filled beer bottles to create the sound heard in the beginning of this song.
  • Mehbooba Mehbooba - R.D. Burman's tune for this song was adapted from Demis Roussos' "Say You Love Me" (1974). This tune was suggested to him by the film's director Ramesh Sippy.[26]
  • Mehbooba Mehbooba - The song was supposed to be sung by Kishore Kumar. R.D. Burman, who had done the scratch recording for the song, decided to step in when Kishore Kumar got delayed for the final recording.[27]
  • Mehbooba Mehbooba - Himesh Reshammiya recreated this song for the film "Aap Kaa Surroor" (2007).[28]
  • Haan Jab Tak Hai Jaan - The tune of this song's mukhda was taken from the whistling solo in the song "Jom'eh" (1971) by the Iranian singer Googoosh.[29]
  • Haan Jab Tak Hai Jaan - The title of this song may have inspired the title of the last film directed by Yash Chopra before he passed away in October 2012.[30]
  • Ke Chaand Sa Koi Chehra Na Pehlu Mein Ho - Initially planned as a qawwali, this song was later composed as a Chaar Bhaand - a folk music form in keeping with the Bhopali character who was supposed to sing the song. The vocals in the song were panned hard left and right to give the effect of a listener sitting in between the exchange. The song was recorded but never shot since the film was already longer than three hours.



References


 

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