The 1975 Hindi film Sholay has been a fan favourite across generations. The movie, which drew inspiration from the wild west culture, is considered a landmark in Hindi cinema and its iconic status remains undaunted to date. Apart from the leading pair of Amitabh Bachchan and Dharmendra whose Jai and Veeru became the epitome of friendship for years to come, the movie also granted recognition to other actors. One of them is of course the legendary Amjad Khan who became an overnight star with his fearsome portrayal of the fearsome villain Gabbar SIngh.
Other actors who gained fame through Sholay are Mac Mohan as Samba and Viju Khote as Kaalia. Both of them played Gabbar’s henchmen in the movie. However, did you know that actor Mac Mohan was not happy with the way director Ramesh Sippy handled his character in the film? Many scenes that Mac Mohan shot for were left out at the editing table.
Mac Mohan later recalled in an interview that he frequented Bangalore for three months to shoot for Sholay but when he watched the film, the movie had only three scenes featuring him. Feeling dismayed, Mac Mohan said that he went up to Ramesh Sippy and asked why there was a need to even keep those three scenes.
Ramesh Sippy had a very interesting answer to his query. He told Mac Mohan that he had given his character as much screen time as he could, but if Sholay proved to be a hit, audiences would remember him by the name Samba throughout his life. Mac Mohan said in the interview that it happened exactly as Ramesh Sippy had predicted. His character of Samba became extremely popular and although he appeared in other films as well, the character of Samba remained the most popular. Mac Mahon made his Bollywood debut in 1964 with the film Haqeeqat, and during his 46-year career, he appeared in about 175 films.
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