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EYE ON BOLLYWOOD JULY 04, 2025 | The Indian Eye 40

SHOLAY RETURNS:

India’s Greatest Film Rides Again

in Restored Glory

Fifty years on, the timeless classic “Sholay” is reborn for a new generation—with

its original ending, restored visuals, and enduring cultural legacy.

OUR CORRESPONDENT
Mumbai
ifty years after it first roared across Indian
cinema screens, Sholay—widely regarded
Fas the greatest Hindi film ever made—is
back. Fully restored and returned to its original,
uncensored form, Ramesh Sippy’s 1975 magnum
opus will premiere at Italy’s prestigious Il Cinema
Ritrovato Festival in Bologna. But this is more
than a re-release—this is a resurrection of one of
Indian popular culture’s defining works.
Originally censored for its stylized violence
and vigilante justice, Sholay is now being shown in
its full, uncut glory. The restored version includes
several deleted scenes and the long-lost original
ending, in which the iconic villain Gabbar Singh
is killed by the vengeance-driven Thakur Baldev
Singh—an ending the Indian censors had de-
manded be changed during the politically charged
Emergency era.
For the millions who grew up with Sholay, this
moment is not just nostalgic—it’s historic. And for “Sholay remains India’s Godfather,” said film help from the British Film Institute. These were
younger generations, this is a chance to experience archivist Shivendra Singh Dungarpur of the Film shipped to Italy’s L’Immagine Ritrovata, one of
the film as it was meant to be seen: raw, poetic, Heritage Foundation. “It is not just cinema, it is the world’s leading restoration facilities.
and larger than life. history, mythology, and memory rolled into one.” The result is the most faithful version of
Crafted by the legendary screenwriting duo Whether it’s Amitabh Bachchan’s brooding Sholay ever seen—restored frame by frame, with
Salim-Javed and featuring an all-star cast—Ami- Jai, Dharmendra’s charming Veeru, Sanjeev Ku- vibrant colour grading, clean sound, and the direc-
tabh Bachchan, Dharmendra, Hema Malini, Jaya mar’s stoic Thakur, or Amjad Khan’s chilling Gab- tor’s original vision intact. Even the camera used
Bhaduri, Sanjeev Kumar, and Amjad Khan— bar Singh, the film gave Indian cinema some of its to shoot the original film was recovered and doc-
Sholay fused Western and samurai influences with most unforgettable characters. And in Gabbar, it umented.
Indian ethos. Its plot—a tale of justice, friendship, created perhaps its most iconic villain—a role so “This isn’t just restoration,” said Dungarpur.
revenge, and resistance—centers around two petty compelling it became a cultural shorthand for evil. “It’s resurrection. It’s giving a nation its most be-
criminals, Jai and Veeru, who are recruited by a The film’s music, composed by R.D. Burman, loved film back—complete and unfiltered.”
former police officer to protect a village from the sold over half a million copies. Its LP of 48 min- The choice of Il Cinema Ritrovato Festival for
bloodthirsty bandit Gabbar Singh. utes of pure dialogue became a best-seller—a tes- Sholay’s world premiere is fitting. Held in Bologna,
Despite a rocky start—harsh reviews, delayed tament to the writing prowess of Salim-Javed and the festival is renowned for showcasing meticu-
prints, and confused audiences—Sholay defied all the film’s unparalleled quotability. lously restored films from cinematic history. The
odds. By the third week of release, viewers were As Amitabh Bachchan once summed it up: screening, under the open sky of Piazza Maggiore,
returning for repeat viewings, quoting lines, and “The victory of good over evil and… most impor- Europe’s grandest outdoor screen, offers a majes-
buying vinyl records of the film’s dialogues. It tantly, poetic justice in three hours. You and I shall tic backdrop for this cinematic epic’s return.
played at Mumbai’s iconic Minerva theatre for not get it in a lifetime.” And it won’t stop there. Plans are underway to
over five uninterrupted years. By the time it ended Bringing Sholay back to life was no small bring the restored Sholay to Indian theatres and
its historic run, Sholay was more than just a hit—it feat. The original 70mm prints had vanished, and global streaming platforms—ensuring that the
was a movement. the surviving negatives were severely damaged. film finds a new audience, even as it continues to
As actor Dharmendra once famously said, In 2022, Shehzad Sippy, son of director Ramesh resonate with old fans.
“Sholay is the eighth wonder of the world.” Sippy, approached the Film Heritage Foundation As Shyam Shroff, a distributor of the film once
The film’s grip on India’s cultural imagination with a desperate hope. said, “As they used to say about the British Empire,
remains strong even after five decades. Its charac- Stored in a dusty warehouse in Mumbai were the sun never sets on Sholay.”
ters are archetypes, its dialogues are part of every- unlabelled cans. Miraculously, they contained the Fifty years on, that sun shines a little brighter,
day vernacular, and its scenes have been endlessly original 35mm camera and sound negatives. Ad- as Sholay returns—not just as a film, but as a leg-
spoofed, referenced, and revered. ditional reels were tracked down in the UK with end reborn.

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