Fenil and Bollywood: Rohan Sippy

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Sholay was like a big and successful startup idea of those days-Rohan Sippy

8:38 AM

Posted by Fenil Seta

Rajesh Naidu (THE ECONOMIC TIMES; September 8, 2025)

Poet and cultural scholar A K Ramanujan in his essay Three Hundred Ramayanas observes: “In India and in Southeast Asia, no one ever reads the Ramayana or the Mahabharata for the first time. The stories are there, 'always already.'” It would not be an unpardonable exaggeration if one uses this insight in the case of one of the greatest films of Hindi cinema: Sholay.

One does not watch Sholay for the first time. One hears, reads, laughs and celebrates Sholay for almost anything—causes, agendas, sarcasm, personal communication and pure entertainment. It is a force which unites the elite with the mainstream and creates cliques even among people who do not share a deep bond. It has created a language of its own in which people speak to communicate the intimate, the profound, the routine and the mundane with absolute precision without losing the context. So, Sholay is a national cinematic language which has remained alive since its release. And it will remain the national cinematic language till the time Hindi cinema is alive.

Recently, Sholay completed fifty years of its release. ET’s Rajesh N Naidu caught up with Rohan Sippy, an accomplished filmmaker himself and son of Sholay’s director Ramesh Sippy, to know his thoughts about the film. Rohan Sippy has directed critically-acclaimed and commercially well-accepted films such as Bluffmaster! and Dum Maaro Dum and web series such as The Office, Sandwiched Forever and Criminal Justice: A Family Matter. He also shared his views about his own works and the current situation of the Hindi film industry. Here are the edited excerpts:

The world is celebrating fifty years of the release of Sholay. What are your thoughts when you look back at the film?

I think it is marvellous how almost everything fell into place for the film. One must consider the time in which the film was made. They were working at a time of political emergency. People were paying income tax, which was as high as 97%. Then, there was entertainment tax which was as high as 177%. This means that doing the movie business itself was challenging and required a daredevil spirit. In this backdrop, there is a director and an able producer who have an ambition to make a film which is larger-than-life than any film made before it.

One can have writers who are at the peak of their powers. One can have a competent producer who had a unique vision, courage and conviction to go into unchartered territory. Yet, one can go wrong and fail. But they all succeeded. This is the most startling part of the story.

One must bear in mind that a lot of technical work of Sholay was done overseas. Technicians were flown to London. Then, there is such a huge cast. It is unimaginable to pull off such a film even today.

It is just the passion to do something special which is palpable in Sholay. They found the right collaborators. They were able to ride out so many challenges on so many different levels. In today’s parlance, going by the sheer confidence and daredevil attitude of the director, Sholay can be considered a Start-up Idea which paid off. A one-in-a-million idea which succeeded. But I don't think one could predict or foresee the kind of success which the film earned over the years. I think this is the case with most great films. A director may have vision, confidence and conviction. But no director can claim to know the recipe of success of a film.

You are closer to the film’s creator than any viewer by the virtue of being his son. There might be stages of your understanding Sholay. You have watched Sholay as a teenager. Then, as a young adolescent. Subsequently, as a well-established filmmaker. As a filmmaker, what have been your key learnings from Sholay?

I first saw Sholay when I was about four years old. It was a magical and overpowering experience. The experience lingered in me for a long time. As a teenager I studied abroad. I showed it to my friends. They also liked it. It has cut across geographies and generations including my daughter and her friends. For me, it is a mystery beyond a point. It has become part of India’s popular mythology. It is like one of our epics.

There are so many lessons within Sholay. Over the years, the film has evolved into a Bible in filmmaking. One comes back to the film for a solution to a writing problem in a script. There are lessons about how to create a world, build characters and focus on certain specific aspects of a scene.

I will give you an example. You look at the introduction of Gabbar Singh in the film. You can study the shot taking one by one and understand how the character is unfolding. There is so much unpredictability in the presentation of Gabbar Singh. You look at where the camera is placed when Gabbar is laughing or where the camera cuts suddenly when Gabbar is in an aggressive mood. Also, the whole drama that unfolds when his gun comes out. The amount of thought which has been poured into these scenes is so awe-inspiring that one does not ever absorb these thoughts in the scene in the first viewing itself. Even the scene where Jaya Bhaduri’s character returns the keys to Jay and Veeru. It is so specific and adds so much emotional depth to the film’s narrative.

Importantly, Sholay’s sound design is another special thing in the film. Many a time, one is tempted to watch the film only for its sound design. You listen to the background sound when Sachin’s dead body is brought back to the village. It is a lesson in bettering your screenplay through an effective sound design.

So, everything from performance to staging scenes to editing them and then, sound design, Sholay has lessons in almost every department of filmmaking.

What are the lessons in filmmaking you have learnt from your father especially in the context of Sholay?

I don't think I have had a sit-down discussion with my father about Sholay. The last thing I want to do is be the millionth person asking him about Sholay. But we discussed a lot about the writing process. From these discussions life lessons would emerge. Lessons about how to take on challenges and keep pushing even when there are a lot of things pushing you back. I learnt that one needs to have conviction in one’s vision and an uncompromising attitude in the pursuit of excellence even when there are easy ways to do things. But the biggest lesson I learnt from the discussions I had with my father is clarity of thought. One needs to have clarity of vision and then pursue it doggedly.

Another thing which I learnt from him is the ambition to be different and not go down a path that either everyone else is going down or something that you have gone down before. You look at his body of work. He has worked in multiple genres. From a love story like Andaz to an out-and-out comedy film like Seeta Aur Geeta to an action adventure like Sholay to a James Bond-kind film Shaan and then again returning to a different kind of love story with Sagar. He also did a different kind of drama version of Mother India in an urban setting through the film Shakti.

This ambition to go out and expand one’s own cinematic language has been a big thing for me. I have followed this in my own way. Apart from Criminal Justice, I did a sitcom like Sandwiched Forever which I shot in a five-camera set up. It was a new learning experience for me.

What was the actual premise with which Ramesh Sippy started Sholay?

My father loved Westerns. He grew up watching them. He also liked horses. Even my grandfather owned racehorses and enjoyed that part of that passion as well. So, my father always thought about this idea of making a film which is close to a western. He always thought: Why cannot we make a film like a western in India? So, I think that was the kernel of the idea of Sholay. Then, I think the discussion with Salim sahab and Javed sahab started. Subsequently, the core story of the film emerged. Then, they bounced the story off with my grandfather. My grandfather instinctively saw potential in the story.

I think at that time there were two films. One was Majboor, a complete script. And the other was this idea of an outdoor western kind of film which will be Sholay. Then this story kept growing big day by day organically. They realized that they would have to fill a big canvas. So, they kept on working because they instinctively knew it was a good idea. I think this is the process by which they end up making the film.

The film’s screenplay was written in sixteen days and in another sixteen days the film’s dialogues were written. So, in a month’s time they had pretty much something very close to the shooting draft and maybe a few scenes here and there were fleshed out later.

There are certain scenes in Sholay which may not be directly connected to the main plot. In that sense, the film's screenplay does not seem tight and a bit scattered. Yet, they are so entertaining that audiences do not realize that they are not adding much to the main plot. What are your thoughts about it?

Those scenes reflect the power of a director who is at the peak of his powers. He was such a daredevil director. He knew that he was taking a little liberty. But he was confident that he will be able to pull it off. It could have been a tighter screenplay. But then the impact would not have been the same. These imperfections and slight diversions make Sholay what it is. These scenes give the film its soul.

Also, there are certain dialogues in Sholay which provide just information. According to you, what elements made these dialogues so iconic?

I think those dialogues are like the cherry on the top of a cake. They sound like a distinct cymbal clash in a beautiful 100-piece orchestra. This is the impact of these dialogues. Everything else is working in a perfect concert. These dialogues make the film memorable. A viewer who comes out of the cinema knows these dialogues. For instance, think about the dialogue: Purey Pachaas Hazaar. It works because there is a lilt to it. In that scene, there is threat, fear and the crescendo of the scene is the dialogue. There is an emotional impact on the audience. I think it was the first time a separate Long Playing (LP) record of dialogues of a film was released. This shows the extent to which the audiences connected with the film. This took the film’s acceptance to another level.

Directing a multi-starrer film could be a challenging thing. There is always a concern about stars not receiving proper footage. According to you, did Ramesh Sippy face any such challenges?

I think my father had earned a reputation as a young, incredibly talented and visionary director before he embarked on the journey of making Sholay. He had delivered two hit films. A lot of actors wanted to work with him. He had developed relationships with big and talented actors such as Sanjeev Kumar ji, Dharmendra ji and Hema Malini ji by this time.

Mr. Bachchan was not in the successful phase of his career. But my father loved him as an actor. My father knew that because he is not at that successful phase it would be easier to handle him than someone who might be at the peak of their power. Then, Jaya ji came on board as she also liked the overall story. There was a certain way in which actors worked that time. They would not just focus on their roles. They would focus on two important things. First: whether they want to be part of a story. And the other is: whether the story of a film was worth telling. This is how actors worked that time. So, it was not a difficult task to bring together these big actors. Also, one needs to bear in mind that the story needed these big stars given its scale. The casting of the film can be summed up as the right person emerging at the right time.

I am sure you have watched films such as Seven Samurai, The Magnificent Seven and similar films which spawned the western genre. How do you assess Sholay when you compare the film with these great western or samurai films?

I think inspiration is always there. One is inspired by others. The great Japanese director Akira Kurosawa was inspired by pulp western books. Then, he in turn inspired American filmmakers. Subsequently, American filmmakers inspired us and others. So, there develops a tribe of storytellers. I think this tribe of storytelling tradition goes back to William Shakespeare. So many of Shakespeare’s stories have geneses or roots in other stories and events. Then, you go back to oral traditions. One picks up from there also. But it is not an easy thing to do.

In Hindi, there is a saying which goes: Nakal Ke Liye Bhi Akal Chahiye (One must possess skills to borrow things and create well and convince others of the originality of one’s creation). One can give the same material to ten people. Nine of these ten people may fail to figure out as to how to use it. But the tenth person will copy certain things from the same material, change some things and present it in such a way that the material would look original. Most of us are like that only. A large part of our learning a language or what constitutes culture is achieved by copying each other only.

So, I think it is not that important whether westerns inspired the people behind Sholay. The world of films is a stream which keeps giving and taking things from one storyteller to another. I think the important thing is the relevance of a story and its ability to connect with audiences. That is the heart of filmmaking.

A lot of acclaimed directors made their great films when they were quite young. Francis Ford Coppola made The Godfather when he was just 32. In fact, Orson Welles who made Citizen Kane at 26, once said ‘ignorance’ in filmmaking was the key thing which worked in his favour. Ramesh Sippy was 28 when he made Sholay. Do you think when a talented director is young enough the ability to do out-of-the-box things is quite high in comparison with a seasoned director who may be set in his or her ways of filmmaking?

Yes, I agree. The spirit of a film reflects the people associated with it. When directors are talented and young, they are not straightjacketed in their worldview. Whether you call it ignorance or confidence, the cowboy mentality that I can do it is always there. This also worked in the case of Sholay. My father and Salim-Javed were like a bunch of cowboys. Even the actors in the film had swagger. The way these people interacted with each other and conducted their lives off screen made them so interesting. It is reflected in the film. One does not see such kind of people today. That is why one does not see that spirit in today’s films.

Which is your favourite character in the film?

I think there are so many memorable characters in the film. People even remember a small character like Samba who had very few dialogues. But I connect the most with Mr Bachchan’s character. One wants to be like the character. He is the coolest thing in the film. It is the most memorable and entertaining character in the film. I like his wit, the way he did his action and the whole emotional arc of the character. The character is very relatable to me.

It is a great tragedy that Sholay did not get many awards. It got the Filmfare Award for Editing only. Do you think it deserved awards in other important departments of filmmaking, especially direction?

It is bizarre to me how a small group of people make a subjective call. In hindsight, it looks ridiculous how such a big film got only one award especially when one considers the fact that the film has stood the test of time. Even after fifty years of its release, we are talking and discussing the film. It shows that the film was quite ahead of its time. It proves Wittgenstein's ruler theory which says a lot about the ruler than the thing which the ruler measures.

As a filmmaker, today when you look at Sholay, do you want to add, edit or delete anything in the film?

If I can go back in time, then I would like to release the uncensored version of the film. There is so much poetry in the way the uncensored version of the film ends. It deals with the idea of revenge in such an interesting manner. It makes the characters realize the futility and hollowness of revenge. In the uncensored version, after killing Gabbar, Thakur goes to Veeru, consoles him and says to him: ‘You lost your best friend. I killed Gabbar. I don’t know whether I have gained anything?’ I think if they had released this uncensored version, then the audiences would have loved the film even more. This is the original version of the film. This idea was used very well at the end of director Shriram Raghavan’s film Badlapur.

Do you think a web series based on Sholay exploring in detail the past of its key characters can be made?

I think it will be fun to look at the film in a web series form. The central mythology of the film could be fun to play around. Yes, a long form storytelling based on the characters of the film will be an interesting thing to explore. One can dig deeper and create more out of the key characters.

Now, let us talk about your work. In its recent research by media and entertainment research firm Ormax Media, Criminal Justice emerged as one of the highly watched original web series. You have directed the last three seasons of the web series. What elements in the series convinced you to be a part of this series?

I had previously worked with Applause Entertainment on some episodes of the Indian version of series The Office. I have long-standing relationships with Sameer Nair and Deepak Segal (producers of Criminal Justice series). In fact, Deepak was the editor of one of my grandfather’s films, Pathar Ke Phool. When I was approached to direct one of the seasons of Criminal Justice, it felt like a natural fit. The first two seasons were produced in the UK. The UK version introduces a new female lawyer character while here we chose to continue with the character Madhav Mishra. It made sense narratively.

Directing a series has been a different experience compared to films. Films typically require more holistic involvement from directors early on. But for a series much of the writing is done before a director's involvement. It is often shaped through discussions with a platform and then a shooting draft is finalized. Our input is focused and more contained compared to the broad scope a film director usually has in films.

One practice that has become a tradition across our projects is conducting table readings with all the actors and key crew members. This process allows everyone to hear the script aloud, which is valuable because television work is oral and visual rather than purely written like a book. Table readings clarify many aspects and generate new ideas. They offer actors insight into their characters' emotional journeys, especially because shooting is fragmented over long periods. I found this collaborative approach particularly effective.

Criminal Justice appealed to me partly because I have not explored the legal genre before. It presented an exciting challenge and an opportunity to discover new creative rules for me. I have directed three seasons. I have seen how the show has evolved into its own format centred on the character Madhav Mishra. The character Madhav Mishra anchors the narrative much like classic legal drama characters.

It has been a rewarding experience to revisit the series multiple times. Each season introduces fresh cases, which helps prevent the show from becoming stale. This mix of familiar characters and engaging new investigations keeps the series relevant to audiences. Overall, the whole journey has been quite gratifying for me.

Are you working on a new film?

I am working on a script. I have been approached by producers for a couple of scripts. But till something is locked, it is impossible to talk about it. But I am trying something in a lighter space.

What is your assessment of the present state of the Hindi film industry?

These are the times of correction. One of the hallmarks of Hindi cinema used to be strong films featuring newcomers. Over the past several years, however, we seem to have moved away from that tradition. I am glad that Yash Raj has embraced it again, and I can already see the benefits. Hopefully, this approach will encourage many more filmmakers to follow suit. It shouldn’t be limited to a single genre either—the larger idea is to back projects with younger actors. After all, the audience largely remains young though we often forget that we have grown older.

Of course, this does not mean films must exclusively feature young actors. But it is important to invite them in and give them space. Saiyaara has done that very effectively, and I hope it sparks fresh excitement among producers and in the market to support such ventures. What is really needed now is new ways of thinking about how to make this happen. If this succeeds, then I hope to see many more such films by the end of the year.

Lastly, what are the challenges in the Hindi film industry? Do you think there is a lack of passion, funding or absence of directors in the right sense of the expression?

I think the expression that sums up the present situation in the Hindi film industry is: Skin in the game. In the earlier time, you had to have skin in the game. A producer was liable. He would put his own cash and credibility on the line. So, in a sense, the risks got evened out. It is not that they weren't failures. A director also realized the risks a producer was taking. A producer knew that he would lose home or office if things go wrong.

Think about the time when Rajshri Productions’ Hum Aapke Hain Koun..! was released. At that time, only mass films were working. But they put everything at stake. They decided that they will not sell the film. They decided to release the film in 36 screens. It was a huge risk. If the film did not work, then they would have incurred losses. They were liable for everything. But it worked. Then, there are instances when producers made mistakes too many times and they knew they were not going to survive.

And this system of having a personal stake worked not just on producers’ level. It worked across the value chain of filmmaking: sub-distributor, distributor, sub-exhibitor and exhibitor. This is how the filmmaking system effectively ran. Today, among other things, this system must sustain for better scope and future of films.

In recent years, the biggest shift which has happened is the people who are authorizing films. They don't have a personal stake or skin in the game in the entire enterprise of filmmaking. They are working for a large studio. And that responsibility which producers and other entities in the value chain of filmmaking shouldered is diffused. So, in that sense, things have changed.

Jiyein Kyun changed everything-Papon

9:15 AM

Posted by Fenil Seta

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