Amusing action scenes

From Sanjeev (Thakur), Amitabh (Jai) and Dharmendra (Veeru) fighting with dacoits on a train to Jai’s brawl with Amjad’s (Gabbar) men towards the end, every action scene was fun and amusing. It didn’t feel like I was watching an action film that has only intense combat scenes. Instead, it was a complete entertaining package, that had all the elements a film should have.

A still from Sholay

I didn’t even know that such advance action sequences were possible to shoot in the 70s. In contrast, today’s action movies are all about blood and gore. The makers have blurred the lines of too much violence. My memory of watching late Dharmendra and Amitabh on screen has only been as veterans, since the beginning of time. It was refreshing to watch a film where the duo was in their early 30s.

ALSO READ | Amitabh Bachchan says ‘pehelwan’ Dharmendra held him tightly during Sholay’s death scene, he was in agony: ‘My acting was natural’

Hema Malini was a star

What Tamannaah Bhatia does today in songs – Aaj Ki Raat from Stree, Kaavaalaa from Jailer, Hema Malini did it 50 years ago. The actor’s performance on ‘Haa Jab Tak Hai Jaan’ won my heart, she was the ultimate star of that moment. Not to mention, Basanti becoming Amitabh and Dharmendra’s saviour with her tonga, when the dacoits come to the village to attack, was a memorable scene.

A still from Sholay

Gabbar – a rebel without cause

Now I know why Gabbar can scare children at night. Even while watching the film, his satirical laugh, his look, and expressions created a sense of fear in me. Never expected that an old era villain could make me feel afraid of the consequences. However, Gabbar was a rebel without cause. He didn’t want money, power, land, but just dominance. While Thakur was extracting his long gestating revenge, Gabbar was purely driven by the desire for dominance on the village of Ramgarh.

Pre and post emergency difference

We keep complaining about the Indian censor board being too strict with its rules. But when viewed in contrast with 1975, filmmakers have a lot more liberty than they did earlier. Despite Sholay having no explicit blood or gore, Ramesh Sippy had to change the ending of his film. In the original climax, Thakur Baldev was supposed to kill Gabbar. However, due to pressure from the Central Board Of Film Certification (CBFC) during the Emergency, the scene was reshot where police arrest the villain, as a police officer should not be taking law into his own hands.

And now, in the post Emergency era, filmmakers have a different definition of ‘too much violence’ than what it was earlier. The CBFC allows alternate endings and makes limited cuts in violent action scenes.

A still from Sholay

Why Sholay can never be made again?

In my perspective, the biggest reason why Sholay can never be made again in 2026 is because actors of this generation are too insecure to feature alongside each other as equals. Perhaps, Dharmendra and Bachchan had pure intentions with all their energy focused on just making a good film. However, the Boomers – Salman Khan, Akshay Kumar, Ranbir Kapoor, Shah Rukh Khan, and the millennials – Varun Dhawan, Sidharth Malhotra, and others, care too much about their screen time and presence. Today’s actors would rather choose grandeur in their own role than a great script. Jai-Veeru walked so that Karan-Arjun could run. There was no competition between the actors to one up each other, but just some great on-screen bromance.

A still from Sholay

Another impressive factor was that Ramesh Sippy made sure to make his female characters an active part of the storyline. Both Hema Malini (Basanti) and Jaya Bachchan (Radha) weren’t just in the service of male leads, but they actually had their own personality, individuality, and came under the spotlight every now and then. If we compare it with films that are made now, the scenario is completely opposite. Actresses are mostly used as a mere prop or eye candy in glamorous roles in films. Case in point, Ranbir Kapoor’s Animal (2023), Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan (2023), and more.