Tag Archives: Sholay

50 Years of Sholay

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Sholay was released on the 15th of August 1975. Fifty years later it remains one of the most iconic, celebrated and loved films in the annals of Indian cinema. Let’s first check-out it’s box office impact which transformed the fortunes of Hindi cinema in the mid 70’s. Planned with an ambitious budget of ₹ 1 crore (2x the budget of a well-mounted Bombay produced film); but the shooting and processing span of 27 months cost GP Sippy Films a staggering ₹ 3 crores. After a dismal start over the first weekend, it gained momentum to become the all-time cultural phenomenon it now is. This happened in an era where there was no social media and with several newspapers and magazines giving mixed and even negative reviews. Indeed, the Emergency had been declared just 2 months earlier. It was word-of-mouth excitement that sparked the Sholay explosion.

Thereafter, even the main-stream media got onto the bandwagon to celebrate its massive collection of ₹ 15 crores in its first run. Sholay had a 50-week (hallmarked as a golden jubilee) run at 28 cinema halls. At Minerva Theatre in Bombay, it was featured for a continuous run spanning an astonishing 5 years. Over the next 7 years of releases and re-releases the film had minted a historic ₹ 35 crores. Many trade experts in 2024 projected the movie’s inflation adjusted earning at around ₹ 2,750 crores. Surpassing the ₹ 2,000+ crores of Dangal (propelled by its humongous success in China) and Bahubali 2 at around ₹ 1,900/ crores. One simple fact to end all debates- Sholay sold more than 25 crore tickets – the highest by any Indian film ever.

Let’s connect with the nay-sayers in August 1975. The country had 11 film circuits including 6 major territories. The Rajesh Khanna starrer, Haathi Meri Saathi (1971) had created a record of ₹ 90 lakh gross in a couple of major territories. But the ₹ 3 crore budget itself signaled disaster. The 198-minute-long film had too much of violence and action and no romance or family values to pull in the crowds; an unknown villain Amjad Khan was pitted against 3 big stars in Dharmendra, Sanjeev Kumar and Amitabh Bachchan. (by the time of the film’s release AB had become the Big B). To make matters worse, Gabbar Singh’s dialogue delivery was considered weak and that too in some rustic dialect; a similar story Mera Gaon Mera Desh with Dharmendra, Asha Parekh and Vinod Khanna had set the box office counters ringing in 1971. Indeed, the tall, well-built Vinod Khanna was impressive in the villain’s role as Jabbar Singh. (Sound familiar? What?). Writer Salim Khan’s father had been a senior police officer in Central India and had talked about a dreaded dacoit called Gabbar Singh in the Gwalior ravines who spread terror by slicing of the noses of those who went against him.

But why has Sholay become such a cultural phenomenon? Why has it become the subject of research for so many social- scientists? There are several dialogues which have entered the common spoken language. Audiences remember names of side characters who barely had screen time for a few minutes. Certain characters and dialogues have contributed to numerous viral and trending memes on YouTube and TikTok. The film itself does not look dated even today. The epic rail chase and encounter with dacoits and the sounds of horse hooves, the steam engine puffing and coaches rattling and rifle shots stunned audiences in 1975. The pulsating back-ground score added the X factor to the 70 MM spectacle as did the expansive lens of the cinematographer, Dwarka Divecha. Even today one wonders how they pulled it off. Delving into some of the back stories surrounding the making of the film may provide some answers about its stupendous impact beyond the darkened single-screen cinema theatres (Author’s note: These nuggets have been mainly consumed from various YouTube interviews of Ramesh Sippy, the director, and the writer duo Salim-Javed + a sprinkling of Sholay  trivia  stock-piled over the years)

What really stands out is the passion, confidence, commitment and teamwork of the entire Sholay unit. Let’s start with producer GP Sippy. Yes, the success of Andaz and especially Seeta aur Geeta (both directed by his son Ramesh Sippy) must have emboldened him. But a ₹ 1crore budget was unheard of in the Bombay film industry at that time. Salim-Javed had approached GP Sippy films with the complete script of what became Majboor which could be wrapped up in a reasonable budget and with limited schedules. However, the film mogul wanted to do something big and Sholay happened. The 27-month shoot in the rugged, rocky terrains of Ramanagara (near Bangalore) and the drastic spike in budget -spend to ₹ 3 crores did not deter the production-house, director, star-cast, technicians and crew from giving their very best. Nothing underlines this more than the fact that when the film’s obituary was being written in the early days after release, Salim-Javed took out full page ads in the Screen and other papers asserting that the movie would gross ₹ 1 crore in every major territory.

GP Sippy Films wanted to retain Dharmendra, Sanjeev Kumar and Hema Malini ( the endearing tangewali Basanti)for their next project after the super-hit success of Seeta Aur Geeta. Amitabh Bachchan was backed by the writer-duo and signed on by Ramesh Sippy after watching his performance in Anand and in the popular Kishore da bus song in Bombay to Goa. Jaya Bahaduri came on board for a small emotional role. Danny Denzongapa was the first choice for the Gabbar Singh character but did not have the dates as he was shooting for Feroz Khan’s Dharmatma in Afghanistan. Again, the just 26-year-old director and the writer team stepped in. Amjad Khan (the son of veteran actor Jayant) and having some theatre experience stepped in. Amjad Khan became Gabbar Singh. The rest, as they say, is history. The debutant actor, himself, gave credit to RD Burman for creating the eerie, unsettling background score when his character was first seen and then adding a palpable aura to his later scenes as well. The Avadhi dialogues became a smash hit with the masses and resonates even 50 years later. ‘Kitne aadmi the?’ (Translation: How many were there?), ‘Ab tera kya hoga Kaaliya?’ (Translation: What will happen to you now Kaaliya?), ‘Yeh haath mujhe de de Thakur!’ (Translation: Surrender your arms to me Thakur- with the implication of cutting his arms off), ‘Bahut yaarana lagta hai!’ (Translation: They look quite close! – said in an amused and calculative way), ‘Holi kab hai? Kab hai Holi?’ (Translation: When is Holi? When is Holi?) have all become part of the spoken lexicon. An interesting trivia is that the cassettes of the Sholay dialogues were specially released on huge public demand and sold more copies than the film’s hit songs.  And let’s listen to Javed Akhtar on why the Gabbar Singh character fascinated the public- ‘…he was pure evil with no back story to justify his cruelty; another reason was that the villain was not a pervert or lecherous, which would have undermined his impact.’

For me, one of the most intriguing aspects of Sholay power is that the names of small characters with limited screen time are still remembered after decades. Gabbar Singh’s side-kick Sambha (played by Mac Mohan) says only three words in the entire film’s run-time- ‘Purre pachas hazaar’ (Translation: A full ₹ 50,000) when the dacoit pointedly asks him about the bounty put on his head by the Government. That too, says Javed Saab, because a supreme egotist like Gabbar can’t boast of it himself. The faithful Sambha has to say it out loud for the other gang members to hear and remember why Gabbar is to be feared- an implicit psychological control over the rest. The venerable and blind Rahim Chacha is remembered for one poignant line, ‘Itna sanaata kyon hai bhai’ (Translation: Why is there so much silence?) when the village is aghast when the body of his dead grandson is brought to the village. The Hitler caricature, bumbling jailor (played by Asrani) has inspired hilarious memes especially with his ‘Aadhe idhar aao. Aadhe udhar jao. Baki hamare saath aao.’ (Translation: Half of you go over there. Half of you over there. The rest follow me- said in a petulant way by a tinpot dictator who is desperately trying to be in command). And who can forget Mausi (so naturally played by Leela Mishra)? And the one-and-only Soorma Bhopali (played by Jagdeep), who entertained us with scenes of situational comedy and flavored by his unique delivery of lines.

Another striking fact about Sholay is that the complete bound script, dialogues and even scene sequencing was handed over to the production house before filming. Only one scene was added and one scene changed. Veeru’s water-tank dramatics was added later to give Dharmendra more screen time, as the star was at the peak of his popularity. Also, in the original film Thakur (Sanjeev Kumar) stamped, kicked and trampled Gabbar Singh to death with his spiked footwear. The CBFC would have none of it and so the cops made their timely entry, arrested the villain and took him away, in a bid for a more palatable ending. When the movie was not doing well after its first weekend, Ramesh Sippy, Salim-Javed and Amitabh Bachchan met to discuss whether the ending with the death of Jai be changed. As by August 1975, Bachchan had become a bonafide superstar with a growing fan following. However, the original death scene remained, as does the legend of Sholay with the fake coin.

As mentioned earlier, the humongous impact of Sholay went far beyond the box-office numbers. Barely a year after it was released, in 1976, Amjad Khan featured in the Britannia Glucose-D ad with the tag-line ‘Gabbar ki asli pasand’ (Translation: Gabbar approved!- Note how the evilest character became  a brand spokesman!). Kailash Surendranath (the admaker) himself remarked on this turn or events, ‘…from being the most feared villain, to the face and brand ambassador of a majorly children consumed product was really something?’ The marketing gold mine was tapped for government campaigns, by major corporates and even down to the Goli Vada Pav joint franchise- ‘Ab goli kha’ (Clever wordplay, where you don’t take the bullet but translation: Have the vada-pav at a Goli franchise) to resonate with the masses.

Even today 50-60 people buy tickets of ₹ 25 each to visit the Ramanagara village- the fictional Ramgarh (off the Bengaluru-Mysuru expressway) to see the rocky locations where the film was shot. On weekends the number of fans goes up to 250. The ticket is ostensibly for the Vulture Park entry, but all the tourists are flocking to see the sites where the iconic film was shot even though nothing related to the film set remains.

As I write this blog, Sholay is being re-released in a 4K restored version (204 mins) at the Toronto International Film Festival. When the film is re-launched in India (re-release is not the word), the senior citizens and the 50+ will throng the cinema halls in millions. The Millennials and the Gen Z may wonder what the buzz is all about and some may even go to end their FOMO (fear of missing out).

Movienomics

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The trending news from Bollywood is that Reliance Jio Studios is in the final phase of discussions for buying the major stake in Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions. Earlier talks with Mr Sanjiv Goenka’s Saregama Group fell through because of valuation issues. Founded in 1976 by Mr Yash Johar with a resounding hit ‘Dostana’, the Company has produced 63 Hindi films with 3 on the floors. So why is this such a big deal.?! Karan Johar represents the centre of the elite and entitled Bollywood club; an omnipresent mover and shaker; other than his films, there is the much-watched, controversial TV show, fashion walks and his celebrity Emcee avatar at all the glittering film awards functions. His considered decision to offload much of his stake (90.7%) and his mother’s stake (9.3%) starkly reveals the tumultuous state of the Hindi film industry.

Listen to his comments also. How has the Mumbai film industry run itself to the ground? First, the stars demand high fees, but the films open poorly, creating unstable economics for producers. The budget structure is skewed so heavily in favour of stars (50%) that there is little left for the technical crew. Simply put, if A-listers cannot generate hits, how do they justify their high fees?! Saif Ali Khan has responded that movie stars should not charge exorbitant fees but…shrug…. shrug, this is a part of the economics of the industry. (Read- Dharma Productions itself is complicit in creating this unbalanced structure.)

The Bollywood mogul has also ranted about the high-ticket costs and F&B charges which have driven audiences away from cinemas. His take is that the average cost for a family of 4 works out to Rs 10,000/. Visits to the cinema have plummeted from 8-10 a year to just one or two. The Multiplex Association of India (MAI) has responded that cinema prices are dynamic and flexible depending on location, day of the week, seat zone, film format and star hype. Higher ticket prices also prevail in the first week, weekends and holidays and even night-shows. MAI has said that the average ticket price at PVR-INOX (1700 multiplex screen leader) is Rs 258/. Plus Rs 132/ as average cost for food and drinks- total expenses of Rs 1560/- for a family of 4. Methinks, the IMA has halved the normal expense for a family movie outing at a multiplex. Mr Ajay Bijli of PVR has said that only 14% of the tickets are priced at Rs 350/ with the rest between Rs 180/- and Rs 200/-. Experience suggests otherwise. The ATR for All India Theatres in 2023 was stated at Rs 130/.

Let’s shed some light on Mr. Vashu Bhagnani’s plight. He became Producer No 1 in the 90s with his rollicking David Dhawan- Govinda movies. His recent release, ‘Bade Miyan Chote Miyan’ made on a whopping budget of Rs 350 crores sputtered to a lifetime collection of Rs 64 crs at the BO. Mr Bhagnani had made tall claims of Rs 1000 crs collections at pre-release events. Alas, the film disaster has reduced him from Bade Miyan to Chote Miyan. With Rs 200 crores of debt he is selling his Juhu Office to, he says, redevelop the building into a luxury residential tower. The film’s director, Ali Abbas Zafar, has sued the producer for non-payment of Rs7.3 crs; accusations of unpaid wages to crew members are also doing the rounds. So, what about the 2 lead male stars, Akshay Kumar and Tiger Shroff? With reported paychecks of Rs 80 crs and Rs 40 crs they are laughing all the way to the bank.

Let’s delve into the Indian cinema ecosystem. We produce the largest number of films in the world- 1500 to 2000 every year- in 20 languages. Our huge country has only 9742 screens as compared to 65,500 in China & 35,280 in the USA. Hindi, Telugu and Tamil are the leading film industries, with Malayalam, Kannada and Marathi cinema also punching above their weight. In 2023, South Indian cinema surged ahead of Bollywood with 47% BO market share against 44%. South India also houses 47% of the cinema theatres. According to researcher Mr Hemant Chaturvedi, the number of single screens in India has declined from 25000 in 1990 to less than 6000, with many of them not operational. End of an Era. With the rising cost of real estate, many have been converted into malls and commercial complexes. Even a smaller theatre costs Rs 5 lakhs for monthly upkeep and maintenance plus the pressure of keeping the projection room, sound system and screen in the best condition. The GST on cinema tickets is 18%, but most States levy an additional entertainment tax of 20% to 30%, the highest tax ratio for any sector in India. Business uncertainties add to the gloom.

The Hindi film industry traditionally had 6 territories, which are now defined as 11 circuits. The profit-sharing ratio generally for a single screen owner/ distributor is 25:75; sometimes, it is 20:80 or even 30:70. The Multiplex owners have all the heft and clout—Week 1 is 50:50, Week 2 is 60:40, and Week 3 is 70:30.

For the Producer, the cost of the film is Budget + Promotion and Advertising expenses. They also sell OTT rights to streaming platforms like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hotstar, Sony Liv… to help recoup their investment. Earlier OTT contracts were pre-sold, and even if a film performed poorly in its theatrical run, the contract was adhered to. This proved to be the lifesaver for the Kartik Aryan film, ‘Shehzada’ which mustered only Rs 32 crores at the cinema counters against a budget of Rs 70 crs. Reportedly, Netflix had paid Rs 40 crs for the streaming rights. Trade analyst Karan Taurani says that now there are clauses in the streaming deals regarding the theatrical performance of the film-where streamers say that only when a film reaches a certain threshold in theatres will the overflow or agreed additional amount be given.

It’s the distributor who takes significant risks when they purchase the rights to distribute a film. They hedge their bets by acquiring the satellite and music rights for the movie. T Series bought the audio rights for Pushpa 2-The Rule for a staggering Rs 65 crs. SRK’s Jawan’s rights had earlier been bought by T series for a record-breaking Rs 36 crs. Tamil-Nadu, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh have a large and passionate fan base for film music. Film songs become chartbusters and are played on a loop on FM stations and streaming platforms like YouTube, Spotify & Rasso. Flashback to the Iconic film ‘Sholay’. In 1975, its dialogues album sold 500,000 copies. By 1979, the platinum 1 million mark was crossed. The film exceeded its Rs 1 crore budget 3X. It grossed Rs 35 crs worldwide and brought in another Rs 35 crores in re-releases. Adjusted for inflation the box-office figures exceed Rs 3000 crores.

The ‘Adipurush’ disaster saga is a cautionary tale for distributors. People Media Factory bought and backed this Rs 550 crs budget film confident of a pan-India hit because of the Prabhas factor; the director Om Raut had delivered a hit with ‘Tanhaji’; plus the fact that it was inspired by the Epic Ramayan meant nothing could go wrong. Superficial performances, shallow storyline, poor VFX and cringeworthy dialogues scripted a mega-disaster. The character, ostensibly inspired by Lord Hanuman, was spouting tapori-style dialogues. Social media was outraged, and the distributors were looking at Himalayan losses of over Rs 150 crores.

The financial challenges for the Indian film industry have been cited as a big drop in audience footfalls, rising cost of production and the growing popularity of OTT platforms offering many options. The Covid lockdown has opened the eyes and sensibilities of audiences to better and more engaging cinema from all parts of India and worldwide. Reliance Jio Studios already holds stakes in Balaji Films and Viacom 18. The phenomenal success of the horror-comedy film Stree 2, which they co-produced with Maddock Films, must have propelled them on. The biggest Hindi film hit of all time with net collections of Rs 600 crores plus and riding on a budget of just Rs 40 crores. The lead actors Rajkumar Rao & Shraddha Kapoor don’t fall into the celebrity guest profile for’ The Koffee with Karan Show.’

Content has become the King. The Vijay Sethupathi-helmed film ‘Maharaja’ is a stellar example. Made on a budget of Rs 20 crores it closed its theatrical run at Rs 107 crores. This masterpiece is jointly produced by The Route, Think Studios, and Passion Studios. Many large and mid-budget films are now following this joint production template. This highly emotional action thriller is a case study in moviemaking. Impactful performances, master-class direction, great screenplay and editing with jaw-dropping twists and turns, real dialogues and photography that make the visual experience so intimate. Since being released on Netflix in July 2024 and with an IMDb rating of 8.5, it has become the most-watched Indian film of 2024. Content is King. Whether it is the true, relatable and inspirational story of ‘12th Fail’ or the real survival and rescue thriller Manjummel Boys. It is the biggest Malayalam hit film ever without marquee names like Mohanlal or Mammootty. The Marathi classic ‘Tumbad’ became a cult film on OTT and is drawing large audiences on its theatrical re-release.

The assembly line productions of Akshay Kumar films- wrapped up in 40 days- no longer work at the BO. One of the greatest duds from the house of YashRaj Films is ‘Pruthviraj Chauhan’ where this star is said to have charged a whopping Rs 60 crores. Many shows were cancelled due to zero attendance. The film fans went hoping to see a glimpse of Samrat Pruthviraj; all they got was Akshay Kumar in every frame. The audience has become unforgiving; social media can influence the fate of a movie on the first weekend itself.

The Soft Power of Indian Cinema is immense. But again, it’s all about the quality of content and the entertainment quotient. Stories with human appeal and emotional connect, catchy music or well mounted large screen spectacles. RRR rode high at the Japanese Box office on all counts. In China, Aamir Khan’s ‘Dangal’ and ‘Secret Superstar’ minted Rs 1400 crores and Rs 810 crores—mind-boggling numbers. Strong storylines created social, cultural & emotional phenomena.

It’s time for Bollywood (and the Indian film industry) to acknowledge their self-inflicted problems. It’s time for them to recognize that good films are created out of collaborative teamwork – where writers, editors, cinematographers, music directors, production designers, and VFX specialists – all play a significant role. They must be recognized and rewarded for their creative contributions. It’s also time to acknowledge that audiences today will flock to the cinema halls in large numbers only if they feel that both their money and time is well spent.