‘Salim-Javed asked me to dub Amjad Khan’s voice for Gabbar in Sholay,’ recalls director Ramesh Sippy

Despite delivering various memorable films like Shaan, Seeta Aur Geeta and Shakti, Ramesh Sippy’s Sholay remains his most memorable work. In a recent interaction with Arbaaz Khan, the filmmaker spoke about various aspects of the film, including living up to its massive, timeless success for the rest of his career. He also divulged details about actor Amjad Khan, who played the legendary role of Gabbar Singh, and how writers Salim-Javed didn’t find his voice menacing enough.

While it is well known that the role of Gabbar was first offered to Danny Denzongpa, Ramesh and the team went ahead with Amjad Khan after his name was suggested by the writers of the film, Salim-Javed. But, later, the writers wondered if his voice should be dubbed in the film. “Salim-Javed sahab asked me to dub Amjad’s voice. They had their opinion. I just felt he is a mountain of a man, and his voice not matching that image is in itself very fascinating. I wanted to stick by that. I had a strong feeling that as it is the character, the way his voice comes out just makes sense,” he shared on Bollywood Bubble.

ALSO READ | Sanjeev Kumar: The actor who had predicted his death and obsessed over older roles

Advertisement

In the same chat, Arbaaz also asked Ramesh about exceeding the budget of the film. The film was supposed to be shot for Rs 1 crore but by the time production ended, the budget was close to Rs 3 crore. The film was being produced by Ramesh’s father GP Sippy and he shared that he never felt any kind of pressure from his father. “GP Sippy was one of the finest entrepreneurs ever in any field. I didn’t feel the pressure because he didn’t apply any pressure on me. I got so involved in the film that if it was taking time, I insisted on getting what I wanted and I kept waiting, whether it was for the perfect light or for a perfect shot,” he said.

He also shared that Sippy Films was presented with two scripts at the time by Salim-Javed – Sholay and Majboor – and while Ramesh was of the opinion that they should start production on Majboor as the script was ready, his father told him to go ahead with Sholay and “not to waste time” on Majboor. Majboor was then directed by Ravi Tandon and also starred Amitabh Bachchan.

Click for more updates and latest Bollywood news along with Entertainment updates. Also get latest news and top headlines from India and around the world at The Indian Express.