Sholay

"The greatest cast ever assembled! The greatest story ever told!"

1975 3h 28m HI

👍

7.1

SOLID

★7.1TMDB · 333

Action

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

After his family is slain by notorious bandit Gabbar Singh, former Inspector Thakur Baldev Singh enlists low-level outlaws Jai and Veeru to capture Gabbar and seek revenge.

“The greatest cast ever assembled! The greatest story ever told!”

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Cast

Dharmendra
Veeru
Amitabh Bachchan
Jai
Sanjeev Kumar
Thakur Baldev Singh
Amjad Khan
Gabbar Singh
Hema Malini
Basanti
Jaya Bachchan
Radha
Leela Mishra
Mausi
Mac Mohan
Sambha

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Ramesh Sippy
Writers: Salim Khan, Javed Akhtar
Languages: Hindi
Countries: India

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

At 208 minutes, this is a three-hour-plus commitment — longer than 95% of films ever made.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $2.0M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Grossed $70M — a 35.0× return. The kind of profit studios chase for a decade.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

ERA

Did you know

51 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Ramesh Sippy, shot by Dwarka Divecha. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Rahul Dev Burman. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor M.S. Shinde shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Dharmendra and Amitabh Bachchan and Sanjeev Kumar carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Ramesh Sippy directs. Dwarka Divecha behind the camera. Rahul Dev Burman scores. M.S. Shinde cuts. A long sit — settle in. Made its budget back several times over at the box office. Produced in India. Dialogue in Hindi.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1At 208 minutes, this is a three-hour-plus commitment — longer than 95% of films ever made.
2Shot for just $2.0M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
3Grossed $70M — a 35.0× return. The kind of profit studios chase for a decade.
451 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
5Directed by Ramesh Sippy, shot by Dwarka Divecha. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Original score by Rahul Dev Burman. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
7Editor M.S. Shinde shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
8Dharmendra and Amitabh Bachchan and Sanjeev Kumar carry the top of the cast.
9Marketing tagline: "The greatest cast ever assembled! The greatest story ever told!".
10IMDB entry: tt0073707 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
11Classified under 12 themes, including "police", "fight", "village", "male friendship".
12Released under 14 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: Dwarka Divecha
Original score: Rahul Dev Burman
Editing: M.S. Shinde
Production design: Ram Yedekar
Makeup / hair: M.S. Deepak
Runtime: 208 min · 3h 28m
Status: Released
Budget: $2,000,000
Box office: $70,000,000
Return: 3500% of budget
Original language: HI
IMDB: Sholay (1975)

Also by

Ramesh Sippy

Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

agnipankh2026-02-20
When Sholay released in India, it didn’t just succeed—it became a cultural event. If you enjoy Bollywood, or you want an entry point into 1970s theatrical-era Hindi cinema—when widescreen spectacle was the default and films were designed for packed houses—Sholay is essential. Visually, it’s built for scale. It was shot in 70mm (often associated with an ~2.2:1 presentation), giving it that grand, panoramic feel that suits its landscapes and set pieces. Narratively, it sits in a classic adaptation chain: Seven Samurai → The Magnificent Seven → Sholay. A retired police inspector hires two petty criminals, Veeru (Dharmendra) and Jai (Amitabh Bachchan), to defend a village and bring down the outlaw Gabbar. Veeru is the charming, happy-go-lucky spark—very much in the spirit of Toshiro Mifune’s iconic wild-card energy in Seven Samurai—while Jai is the quieter, steadier counterweight. Despite its runtime, the pacing is brisk, and it lands like a true big-screen entertainer.

Production companies