50 years of Sholay: Hema Malini expresses joy at film completing a milestone

The iconic Hindi language film Sholay will complete 50 years of release on August 15, 2025. Ahead of the film completing this major milestone, actress Hema Malini shared her joy for the same. She played the role of  Basanti in the film. Written by the epic Javed Akhtar and Salim Khan, the 1975 film features the legendary Amitabh Bachchan and Dharmendra in the lead alongside Amjad Khan, Hema Malini, Jaya Bachchan, and Sanjeev Kumar.

Hema Malini speaks on 50 years of Sholay

Speaking to ANI, the actress-turned-politician said, "It feels great. When I started working on Sholay, I didn`t know that it would be such a hit, and after 50 years, you would be asking me questions about it in the Parliament. That was a different time."

She also emphasised that there can never be another Sholay, seemingly referring to the current trend of remakes.

Released in 1975, Sholay has turned into a cult favourite in Indian cinema, owing to its powerful story, memorable characters, iconic dialogues, and the evergreen songs like Yeh Dosti, Mehbooba Mehbooba, Haa Jab Tak Hai Jaan, Holi Ke Din`and others.

Directed by Ramesh Sippy, the film underperformed at the box office, only to become a favourite in the following years.

The film`s story focuses on the Ramgarh village, where retired police chief Thakur Baldev Singh (Sanjeev Kumar) plans to defeat the notorious bandit, Gabbar Singh (Amjad Khan) with the help of the mischievious Jai (Amitabh Bachchan) and Veeru (Dharmendra).

Upon arriving in the village, the duo realises the menace of Gabbar Singh and double on the efforts to help Thakur. Jaya Bachchan and Hema Malini are seen playing Jai and Veeru`s love interests as Basanti and Radha respectively.

Amitabh and Dharmendra share memories of shooting Sholay

As per a press release, Amitabh Bachchan, while sharing his thoughts, said, "Some things in life remain permanently etched in your mind. Sholay is one such film. Shooting for the film was an unforgettable experience, but at the time I had no idea that it would be a watershed for Indian cinema. Its dramatic change in fortunes from being declared an unsuccessful venture, to its record-breaking box office run was an emotional rollercoaster for all of us. It`s wonderful that the Film Heritage Foundation has restored "Sholay" and that they have managed to locate and include the original ending as well as some deleted scenes in the restoration.I hope that even 50 years later, the film will capture the imagination of new audiences across the world."

Dharmendra said, "Sholay is the 8th wonder of the world. I am thrilled to hear that the film is being restored and I am sure it will have the same success as it had 50 years ago. Who can forget the dialogues of Salim-Javed and the direction of Ramesh Sippy? So many scenes have gone down in the history of Indian cinema and every character became a star. But the real hero was the coin. Few people know that I was offered the role of Gabbar and Thakur, but I was clear that I wanted to play the role of Veeru as he is so much like me. I had so much fun on the shoot. My favourite scenes were the tanki scene, the scene in the temple, and so many others, but the most powerful scene I feel was the death of Jai, which is still etched in my mind."