Entertainment News

Gabbar bridged gap between commercial and art cinema | Kolkata News - The Times of India

Kolkata: Most fans of 'Sholay' are aware that Satyajit Ray had cast Amjad Khan in his 'Shatranj Ke Khiladi' after being overwhelmed by his performance in Ramesh Sippy's 'Sholay'. Ray had famously spoken about how had wanted to cast Amjad Khan in a role that went against his grain to see how it works. On Friday, when Sippy delivered the Satyajit Ray Memorial Lecture, the audience also got to know from Kolkata International Film Festival (KIFF) chairperson Goutam Ghose that Ray had said "it ('Sholay') was one of the most well-crafted Indian cinema" he had ever seen.Sippy spoke about the making of 'Sholay' and the impact that films like 'Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid', 'The Magnificent Seven' and 'Seven Samurai' had on him. "Akira Kurosawa definitely gets the salute he deserves. His 'Seven Samurai' inspired 'The Magnificent Seven'. I saw Kurosawa later. At the time of making 'Sholay', I had watched 'The Magnificent Seven'," Sippy said.He spoke about the genesis of 'Sholay' from a four-line idea about an Army officer and two boys. Seeing the challenges of seeking permission from the Army, the plot was shifted to revolve around a cop. He touched upon Dharmendra's initial interest in playing Thakur Baldev Singh (Sanjeev Kumar), and how he was convinced otherwise when told it would mean not getting Basanti (Hema Malini).The film-maker also highlighted his onscreen equation with Hema Malini, recalling that she had worked with him first in 'Andaz' and then in 'Seeta Aur Geeta' before 'Sholay'. "When Basanti's role came up, even I could not say the lines as fast as she could," he said.He recollected how he had first imagined Gabbar being a very impulsive and heady character who would smile one moment and lambast someone a second later. That description gave Javed Akhtar the drift and he wrote a scene. "Immediately, I knew he had caught on. That first scene came in the ninth reel -- with Gabbar saying 'Kitne admi the'," Sippy said.Anecdotes about how the first scene shot was the massacre of Thakur's family when Jai (Amitabh Bachchan) returned the key to Radha (Jaya Bachchan). "Nobody will believe this, but the shooting of the lighting of the lamp with Pancham's mouth organ playing in the background took about 15-20 nights. We could only take one shot each evening at dusk. With today's technology in post-production, you can do a lot of things. Back then, if we missed the right moment by a minute or two, that shot was not possible."What made the talk interesting were insights about the technical aspects of filming 'Sholay'. Sippy had spent four days filming the 'Mehbooba Mehbooba' song and 23 days on the massacre sequence due to unpredictable weather. He said lighting limitations at the time meant shooting could only proceed under suitable skies, forcing repeated pauses. After two days of bright sunlight followed by heavy cloud cover, he decided on the fourth day to press on regardless of the weather. Dwarka Divecha, the cinematographer, had asked Sippy what he would do if the sun came out. Sippy's reply was that he would stop shooting. "I think when one looks at it, it seems like it was well worth it."He also spoke about the censorship battle of 'Sholay' during Emergency that forced him to chop off some 10 minutes because of the impact of violence that he had supposedly shown. Sippy said today's audience will not feel much of a difference when they see the original since the censored version has flowed so "smoothy for 50 years" that everyone has got "used to it".Film editor Sujay Datta Ray, who was present in the audience, requested Sippy to talk about the film's editor M S Shinde. Sippy said Shinde was "equally responsible", and so were all other technicians of his team. He also referred to Azizbhai, who looked after the settings and narrated an incident about how he had exactly recreated a look apt for a shot where the bike would go up and down. "Two days later, he came back with exactly what I had wanted," Sippy said.Ghose asked a question about sound designer Mangesh Desai, who made sure that the sound of the coin being flung reverberated in theatres, and if the six-track stereo mixing in London will be converted to 5.1 in the restored version. "Yes, it will. Mangesh Desai came with me to London and he saw what they were doing there and learnt it. He came back and asked me if he could redo the entire mix. I agreed," Sippy said.Finally, he urged film-makers to pursue their passion and remain confident in the future of cinema. "First, you have to be the student. You should want to do it. You should have that strong urge. Today, women are also doing a great job. Any time is a great time in cinema. The markets will have their own behavior. They will readjust. You will also readjust to the markets. You can't put more money into a film if there is no return. Please don't be afraid. Follow your heart, follow your dreams. I think the one that combines commercial and art, to me, that's the best cinema."However, Sippy made it clear that he is not making another 'Sholay' since people have not got over it even 50 years later. "It is better to keep trying to do something else. And I have tried and the result is there for everyone to see," he said.

Latest Stories

Read Full Story