46 Years of Sholay: Dharmendra has an idea for a SEQUEL of this ICONIC film; wants Abhishek Bachchan and Bobby Deol to play Veeru and Basanti’s sons! 46 : Bollywood News

A discourse on Hindi cinema is incomplete without the mention of Sholay. The film was released on this very day, in 1975, and became a smashing hit all over. Its dialogues, characters, action, songs and even some of the iconic moments are still memorable and forever etched in the minds of viewers. Directed by Ramesh Sippy, it starred Amitabh Bachchan as Jai and Dharmendra playing the role of Veeru. Hema Malini, debutant Amjad Khan, Sanjeev Kumar, Jaya Bachchan, A K Hangal, Jagdeep, Asrani, Mac Mohan, Viju Khote and Iftekhar also featured in this action drama. The story was simple – a handicapped former police officer enlists the services of two bandits and asks them to capture a bandit who has wreaked havoc in a small town. But the execution by Sippy and script by Salim-Javed made it a must-watch fare.

46 Years of Sholay: Dharmendra has an idea for a SEQUEL of this ICONIC film; wants Abhishek Bachchan and Bobby Deol to play Veeru and Basanti’s sons!

On the film’s 46th anniversary, we bring to you interesting trivia which you probably have never heard about till date. Journalist and author Roshmila Bhattacharya in her book, Matinee Men, mentions that Dharmendra once confided to her that he has thought of a premise for the sequel for Sholay! The first part ended with Gabbar Singh getting arrested and Jai suffering an unfortunate death. Veeru leaves Ramgarh with Basanti.

As per Dharmendra, in the sequel, he envisioned that Veeru and Basanti get married after settling down at some other town or village. Both have two sons who grow up to be Abhishek Bachchan and Bobby Deol! They are brought up by Radha (Jaya Bachchan), who loved Jai in the first part and was left alone after his demise.

Dharmendra then doesn’t go into the details but says that circumstances compel the two boys, Veeru, Basanti and Radha to go to Ramgarh to avenge Jai’s death. Whether it’s Gabbar Singh making a return after his jail imprisonment is over or whether a new villain gets introduced is not known. But the idea of a sequel to Sholay and the casting coup is surely something that excites us!

Also Read: Shatrughan Sinha reveals he had rejected Sholay; says he is sad but happy that Amitabh Bachchan got a big break